Tucnnnnn  nnrv 

:ODORE  ROO 


AS  I 


•is 


ERDJNAND  C.IGLEHA 


ILLUSTR 


THE  LIBRARY 

OF 

THE  UNIVERSITY 
OF  CALIFORNIA 

PRESENTED  BY 

PROF. CHARLES  A.  KOFOID  AND 
MRS.  PRUDENCE  W.  KOFOID 


(c)   Underwood  &   Underwood 


THEODORE 
ROOSEVELT 

THE  MAN  AS  I  KNEW  HIM 


FERDINAND  COWLE  IGLEHART,  D.  D. 
Author  of  "The  Speaking  Oak" 


NEW  YORK. 

THE  CHRISTIAN  HERALD 
1919 


COPYRIGHT,    1919 

THE  CHRISTIAN  HERALD 


To  MY  WIFE  AND  CHILDREN 
THIS  BOOK  Is  AFFECTIONATELY  DEDICATED 


1°, 


PREFACE 

1HAVE  always  counted  as  one  of  the  high 
est  honors,  joys  and  blessings  of  my  life 
the  intimate  personal  friendship  of  Theo 
dore  Eoosevelt  for  the  last  twenty-four  years.* 
As  pastor  of  the  Park  Avenue  Methodist  Church 
in  New  York  City,  we  were  associated  with  him 
in  his  work  as  Police  Commissioner'  in  closing 
Sunday  saloons  and  were  engaged  with  him  in 
the  desperate  fight  against  evil  and  crime  in  the 
great  city. 

Two  motives  prompted  me  to  write  this  book. 
First,  to*  pay  a  personal  tribute  of  affection  to 
him.  Every  line  of  this  book  is  an  appreciation 
of  his  great  ability  and  a  stream  of  love  flows 
between  the  lines  from  beginning  to  end.  I  have 
traced  him  from  his  birth  in  the  city  home 
through  the  days  of  his  boyhood  and  early  edu 
cation,  to  Harvard  University;  through  a  series 
of  public  offices  such  as  no  one  man  ever  filled 
outlining  the  important  features  of  his  adminis 
tration  in  each,  and  his  mighty  influence  upon  in 
dividual  and  national  destiny.  He  destroyed  the 
illegal  combination  of  corporations  in  their  con- 


M311655 


vi  PREFACE 

spiracy  against  the  government  and  saved  the 
republic  from  the  ruin  which  they  threatened. 
He  compelled  the  rich  man  and  the  most  influ 
ential  to  obey  the  law  as  completely  as  the  poor 
est  man,  which  made  him  the  idol  of  the  com 
mon  people  and  also  of  the  honest  rich.  He  so 
loved  his  country  that  he  gave  himself  abso 
lutely  to  its  service,  as  well  as  his  four  boys, 
whom  he  loved  better  than  his  life.  Mention 
has  been  made  of  his  titanic  achievement  in 
building  the  Panama  Canal.  While  he  was  in 
the  White  House,  he  revealed  to  me  some  of 
the  deepest  secrets  of  his  heart,  which  I  ques 
tion  whether  he  ever  mentioned  to  any  mortal 
outside  of  his  own  family.  Some  of  these  are 
quoted  in  this  work,  because  they  contain  such 
immortal  principles  that  I  know  he  would  like 
to  have  me  tell  them  to  my  fellow  countrymen. 
We  have  referred  to  him  as  an  author  with  his 
thirty-five  splendid  volumes  and  have  shown  his 
literary  style  and  made  quotations  from  some 
of  his  books,  and  have  watched  him  as  a  natur 
alist  among  the  flowers  and  birds,  the  insects, 
and  the  big  game  of  the  forest,  and  made  a 
record  of  some  of  the  things  he  said  about  them. 
The  second  reason  for  writing  this  book  was 
that  in  some  modest  way  I  might  hold  up  this 
magnificent  specimen  of  manhood  as  a  model 
and  inspiration  to  my  fellowmen.  We  look 
into  his  home  and  find  the  ideal  husband  and 
father  whose  happiness  and  rugged  virtues  have 
sweetened  and  sanctified  the  name  of  home  and 


PREFACE  vii 

been  a  blessed  inspiration  to  every  home  in  the 
land.  We  have  referred  to  his  courage,  believ 
ing  him  to  be  one  of  the  bravest  men  in  history. 
We  have  related  the  incidents  of  the  fights  with 
grizzly  bear  and  man-eating  lion,  and  of  his 
standing  with  both  shoes  full  of  blood  and  mak 
ing  his  speech  after  he  had  been  shot,  an  act  of 
sublime  heroism. 

We  have  told  of  his  confronting  the  most 
dangerous  men  and  of  his  moral  courage ;  of  his 
personal  and  political  integrity,  which  no  penny 
of  graft  ever  dared  approach  and  against  which 
there  was  no  breath  of  scandal;  of  his  in 
domitable  industry;  of  his  loyalty  personified, 
which  burned  with  such  a  flame  that  he  set  the 
whole  nation  afire  with  Americanism  and  tri 
umphant  democracy.  There  is  here  noted  his 
lifelong  hostility  to  the  saloon,  his  demand  for 
war  prohibition,  and  friendliness  to  national 
constitutional  prohibition,  and  of  his  friendli 
ness  to  woman  suffrage.  We  have  chapters 
which  give  at  length  Theodore  Eoosevelt  as  a 
Christian  j  his  article  on  the  Bible,  in  which  he 
holds  that  it  is  the  basis  of  individual  character 
and  of  public  virtue;  his  belief  in  Christ  as  a 
personal  Saviour;  the  incident  of  his  joining  the 
church,  which  we  received  from  his  old  pastor; 
of  him  as  a  practical  preacher  of  righteousness> 
demanding  the  doing  as  well  as  the  hearing  of 
the  Word;  his  belief  in  a  future  life  and  his 
words  on  the  death  of  his  son,  killed  in  the  great 
war. 


viii  PREFACE 

Space  is  given  to  the  estimate  of  Theo 
dore  Eoosevelt  by  Dr.  Albert  Shaw,  the  editor 
of  The  Review  of  Reviews,  one  of  the  most  inti 
mate  friends  the  Colonel  ever  had  in  the 
world,  which  article  was  prepared  especially  for 
this  book;  and  also  an  editorial  in  The  Outlook 
by  Dr.  Lyman  Abbott,  another  one  of  the  dear 
est  friends  of  the  Colonel,  which  he  gave  me  for 
use  here.  General  George  W.  Goethals  gave  to 
us  for  this  volume  some  words  on  the  relation  of 
President  Eoosevelt  to  the  building  of  the  Pan 
ama  Canal. 

The  book  has  been  brought  down  to  date  and 
an  account  of  his  death  and  funeral  services 
have  been  recorded.  The  sorrow  of  the  world 
was  expressed  in  cable  messages  from  Presi 
dent  Wilson,  the  King  and  Queen  of  England, 
Lloyd  George,  Eudyard  Kipling  and  others 
abroad  and  at  home. 

Copious  extracts  from  notable  memorial 
services  have  been  furnished  by  their  authors 
for  use  in  this  volume,  including  those  of  Henry 
Cabot  Lodge  in  Washington,  Charles  E. 
Hughes,  Chauncey  Depew,  Bishop  Luther  B. 
Wilson  in  New  York,  Gifford  Pinchot  in  Phila 
delphia,  Will  H.  Hayes  in  Indianapolis,  Chan 
cellor  James  E.  Day  at  Albany  and  Archdeacon 
Carnegie  at  Westminster  Abbey. 

Touching  tributes  have  also  been  given  to  us 
by  Gen.  Leonard  Wood,  Sec.  Franklin  K.  Lane, 
Cardinal  Gibbons,  Eabbi  H.  P.  Mendes,  Mr. 
John  M.  Parker,  a  merchant  friend  and  others. 


PREFACE  ix 

[We  have  devoted  a  chapter  to  Colonel  Roose 
velt's  sons  and  family-  with  a  sketch  of  their 
life  and  heroic  deeds,  and  a  chapter  to  what 
the  friends  of  Oyster  Bay  think  and  say  about 
him,  for  publication  here. 

In  estimating  Theodore  Eoosevelt,  I  have 
illustrated  the  various  elements  of  his  char 
acter  and  life;  by  many  incidents  of  our  per 
sonal  relationship  that  have  never  been  printed, 
and  hence  are  unknown  to  any  one  but  himself 
and  to  me. 

In  treating  Theodore  Eoosevelt,  the  man,  as 
I  knew  him,  I  have  given  a  concise  and  yet  com 
prehensive  history  and  biography  of  my  friend 
and  all  the  great  events  and  salient  points  of  his 
character.  This  volume  has  been  prepared  with 
the  hope  that  rich  and  poor,  high  and  low,  politi 
cal  friend  and  enemy  might  find  interest  and 
profit  in  reading  it.  Theodore  Eoosevelt 's 
rugged  virtues  will  appeal  to  every  man  with 
high  hopes  and  ambitions,  looking  for  the  best 
models  and  desiring  to  make  the  most  of  him 
self  ;  to  every  working  man  who  knows  how  the 
great  leader  loved  him  and  worked  so  hard  for 
him;  to  every  man  who  recognizes  how  valu 
able  truth  and  honor  and  industry  are  as  ele 
ments  of  manhood  and  success ;  to  every  public 
servant,  from  the  humblest  office-holder  to  the 
ruler  of  the  nation,  who  would  scorn  a  bribe  as 
he  would  a  scorpion  and  give  himself  up  wholly 
to  the  public  good;  to  every  woman  who  loves 
the  name  of  home;  to  every  young  man  or 


x  PREFACE 

woman  who  cherishes  the  highest  ideals  and 
plans  of  life.  This  book  is  sent  out  stained  with 
my  tears  and  those  of  the  nation;  with  sorrow 
in  our  hearts  that  we  shall  see  his  face  no  more, 
but  bright  with  hope  that  his  spirit  will  remain 
with  us,  and  that  we  shall  see  him  again,  and 
breathing  a  prayer  that  it  may  be  used  for  the 
happiness  and  benefit  of  our  fellowmen,  and 
the  establishment  of  Christ 's  Kingdom  on 
earth,  to  which  Theodore  Koosevelt,  the  man 
and  the  Christian,  devoted  his  life. 

F.  C.  I. 


TABLE  OP  CONTENTS 

Chapter 

I  WASHINGTON — LINCOLN — ROOSEVELT  . .  23 

II  His  BIRTHPLACE  AND  BOYHOOD 37 

III  AT  HARVARD 59 

IV  MEMBER  OF  STATE  ASSEMBLY 71 

V  RANCH  LIFE 83 

VI     CIVIL  SERVICE  COMMISSION 95 

VII  POLICE  COMMISSIONER  OF  NEW  YORK  . .  107 

VIII    SPANISH-AMERICAN  WAR  121 

IX    GOVERNOR  OF  NEW  YORK 131 

X  THE  CITIZEN  AND  THE  PUBLIC  MAN  . .  143 

XI    THE  VICE-PRESIDENCY 153 

XII  THEODORE  ROOSEVELT  AS  PRESIDENT  BY 

DR.  ALBERT  SHAW 163 

XIII  PANAMA  CANAL — GENERAL  GOETHALS.  181 

XIV  HEART  SECRETS  TOLD  IN  A  WALK  TO 

THE  WHITE  HOUSE 193 

XV    INTERVIEWED  PRESIDENT  ON  GOVERNOR 

HUGHES*  RENOMINATION   203 

XVI    THEODORE   ROOSEVELT   A  HERCULES — 

BIG    STICK — NATURALIST — AUTHOR.  213 
XVII    HERCULES  CONTINUED — HUNTER — EX 
PLORER — PROGRESSIVE  225 

XVIII     SAGAMORE  HILL  245 

XIX    THEODORE  ROOSEVELT  's  SONS 259 

XX    FRIENDS  AT  OYSTER  BAY 279 

xi 


Xll 


CONTENTS 


Chapter  Page 

XXI    His  RELIGION 291 

XXII    ROOSEVELT  AND  THE  BIBLE 307 

XXIII  FAVORS    WAR    AND    CONSTITUTIONAL 

PROHIBITION  319 

XXIV  ROOSEVELT  THE  GREAT  HEART 329 

XXV    His  DEATH  345 

XXVI    ADDRESSES    BY    DEPEW    AND    BISHOP 

WILSON  357 

XXVII    HENRY     CABOT     LODGE'S     MEMORIAL 

ORATION  369 

XXVIII    ADDRESS  BY  CHARLES  E.  HUGHES 383 

XXIX    ESTIMATES   OF   WILL   H.    HAYS   AND 

GlFFORD    PlNCHOT     395 

XXX    ESTIMATES  OF  REV.  DR.  LYMAN  ABBOTT 
AND   OF  A   NEW  YORK   MERCHANT 

FRIEND  409 

XXXI    ESTIMATES  OF  GEN.  LEONARD  WOOD — 
SEC.  FRANKLIN  K.  LANE — REV.  DR. 

J.  R.  DAY 419 

XXXII    THE  GREAT  ADVENTURE.  .  .  429 


WASHINGTON— LINCOLN— ROOSEVELT 


CHAPTER  I 
WASHINGTON—LINCOLN—ROOSEVELT 

JULIUS  and  Augustus  Caesar,  the  great  em 
perors,  were  deified  by  the  Romans,  and  they 
perpetuated  their  names  in  the  months  which 
the  two  emperors  had  named  for  themselves — July, 
after  Julius,  and  August,  after  Augustus.  If  we  were 
giving  names  to  the  months  in  our  country  nowadays, 
we  would  call  one  Washington,  another  Lincoln,  and 
another  Roosevelt,  the  last,  of  course,  for  the  month 
of  June  with  its  roses.  The  reverence  and  affection 
of  Americans  for  these  three  heroes  is  akin  to  the  de 
votion  of  the  Romans  for  the  Caesars. 

After  the  first  agonizing  cry  at  the  sudden  death  of 
Theodore  Roosevelt  there  burst  forth  spontaneously 
from  the  nation's  heart  praises  of  the  departed  hero 
that  reached  the  borderline  of  idolatry.  Roosevelt 
took  his  place  instantly  among  the  trio  of  immortals. 
He  had  been  dead  but  one  month  and  six  days  when 
the  people  indicated  the  place  they  intended  to  give 
him  in  permanent  history.  They  hung  up  his  picture 
on  Lincoln's  birthday  with  that  of  Washington  and 
Lincoln.  From  the  Atlantic  to  the  Pacific,  from  the 
lakes  to  the  gulf,  and  throughout  our  island  posses- 

23 


24  THEODOEE   KOOSEVELT 

sions,  in  the  halls  of  art,  the  palaces  of  the  rich  and 
the  cottages  of  the  poor,  were  hung  the  pictures  of 
"Washington,  Lincoln  and  Roosevelt. 

These  three  heroes  represented  the  three  important 
eras  of  the  nation's  history — Washington,  its  birth; 
Lincoln,  its  salvation,  and  Roosevelt,  its  perpetuity. 
Washington  had  been  dead  only  ten  years  when  Lin 
coln  was  born,  and  Roosevelt  was  a  boy  six  years 
old  when  Lincoln  died,  so  that  the  lives  of  these  three 
giants  practically  span  the  birth,  the  growth  and  the 
glory  of  the  American  commonwealth. 
•  It  would  be  difficult  to  compare  these  national 
heroes.  They  were  so  singularly  adapted  to  the  pe 
riods  in  which  they  lived,  and  to  the  tragic  services 
they  were  called  upon  to  perform,  that  each  seems 
complete  and  incomparable  as  a  leader  in  his  time. 
They  were  dissimilar  in  many  particulars.  Washing 
ton  and  Lincoln  were  each  over  six  feet  high ;  Roose 
velt  was  comparatively  short  and  stout.  Washington 
was  clean-shaven;  Lincoln  had  a  beard,  and  Roose 
velt  a  mustache. 

Washington  wore  silk  stockings  and  silver  shoe 
buckles ;  Roosevelt  belonged  to  the  silk  stocking  colony 
in  New  York  and  wore  fine  shoes ;  Lincoln  never  had 
a  pair  of  stockings  on  his  feet  till  he  was  a  man  grown, 
and  no  shoes  except  in  snowtime,  and  those  rude  ones 
made  by  his  father's  hand.  Washington  and  Roose 
velt  wore  fine  clothes ;  Lincoln  up  to  the  time  he  was 
twenty-one  years  of  age  wore  deerskin  pants,  deerskin 
vest  and  a  coonskin  cap  with  the  tail  left  on,  and  his 
cabin  was  surrounded  with  wolves  and  bears.  Lin 
coln's  father  was  exceedingly  poor;  Washington's 
father  was  in  comfortable  circumstances;  Roosevelt's 
father  was  counted  a  millionaire. 

There  was  not  only  a  difference  in  surroundings, 


WASHINGTON— LINCOLN— ROOSEVELT  25 

but  in  mental  characteristics,  between  these  heroes.  In 
purely  intellectual  force  Washington  was  perhaps  not 
the  equal  of  Lincoln  or  Roosevelt.  Thomas  Jefferson, 
Alexander  Hamilton,  John  Marshall  and  Benjamin 
Franklin  possibly  had  a  sturdier  type  of  intellect. 
But  Washington's  faculties  were  so  evenly  balanced 
and  true,  he  was  such  a  great  general,  such  a  wise 
statesman,  so  absolutely  devoted  to  his  country,  that 
he  took  a  place  head  and  shoulders  above  them  all  as 
the  leader  in  the  founding  of  the  republic. 

Lincoln  had  one  of  the  greatest  intellects  the  world 
has  ever  known.  Without  schools,  books,  culture,  or 
travel,  by  the  sheer  force  of  his  mind  and  heart,  he 
gripped  the  nation,  commanded  its  armies  and  navies 
and  saved  the  Union. 

Theodore  Roosevelt  had  a  prodigious  intellect.  He 
did  not  think  so.  He  insisted  that  it  was  only  of  the 
ordinary  type,  and  that  what  he  had  become  or  done 
was  the  result  of  desperately  hard  work  and  dogged 
persistency.  We  decline  to  accept  this  estimate  of 
him.  He  was  an  intellectual  prodigy,  if  there  ever 
was  one.  He  had  Lincoln's  rugged,  virile  type  of 
mind  with  an  added  versatility  which  reading,  study, 
writing  and  travel  alone  can  give.  For  nearly  a  score 
of  years  he  did  the  hard  thinking  for  the  statesmen  of 
the  nation.  Political  friend  and  foe  waited  for  him  to 
solve  the  perplexing  problems  of  state  and  announce 
the  result. 

A  little  over  a  year  ago  I  called  at  Colonel  Roose 
velt's  office  on  an  important  matter,  and  though  the 
outer  room  was  full  of  those  who  had  appointments  to 
meet  him,  he  sent  for  me  to  come  into  his  room.  "Take 
that  chair,"  he  said,  "and  pull  it  up  close  to  mine,  and 
sit  down  and  don't  say  a  word  to  me.  I  have  sent 
for  you  to  come  in  and  sit  up  close  to  me.  It  reminds 


26  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

me  of  the  good  old  times  we  had,  and  the  good  new 
ones  we  have  been  having  as  well."  He  said,  "I  have 
got  to  sign  this  big  pile  of  letters  here  and  get  them 
into  the  mail,  and  then  I  will  listen  to  what  you  have 
on  your  mind."  I  replied,  "I  have  this  which  came 
into  my  mind  since  I  entered  the  room ;  you  can  hear 
it  while  you  write.  It  is  this :  I  wonder  what  the  peo 
ple  will  pay  for  those  letters  and  that  signature  a  hun 
dred,  a  thousand  years  from  now.  I  venture  to  say 
that  name  scratched  by  your  pen  will  bring  from  $100 
up  a  hundred  years  from  now,  and  many  thousands 
of  dollars  five  hundred  or  a  thousand  years  from 
now."  I  continued,  "Your  fame  is  secure  for  the 
centuries  to  come."  I  expected  a  witty  answer,  such 
as  he  usually  gave  me  under  such  circumstances.  But 
he  did  not  give  it.  I  looked  at  his  face  and  it  was 
serious.  He  saw  I  was  serious  and  not  joking,  and  he 
did  not  joke,  but  said,  "It  is  lovely  in  you  to  say  such 
nice  things."  And  I  said  to  myself  while  he  went  on 
signing  his  letters  that  he  knew  he  belonged  to  hu 
manity,  to  the  universal  heart,  to  the  ages;  that  he 
felt  within  himself  the  symptoms  of  his  earthly  im 
mortality,  and  that  he  would  have  a  place  in  history 
with  Washington  and  Lincoln. 

Washington  was  courtly  and  serious,  but  devoid  of 
humor  when  compared  with  the  other  two.  Lincoln 
was  at  the  same  time  the  saddest  and  the  funniest 
man  in  the  country.  His  native  wit  has  never  been 
surpassed  in  our  land.  Roosevelt  had  a  humor  which, 
though  perhaps  not  so  irresistible  as  that  of  Lincoln, 
was  just  as  abounding  and  healthful.  Either  could 
have  made  a  Mark  Twain  in  literature  if  he  had  cared 
to.  Roosevelt,  with  all  his  desperate  contests,  with  all 
his  perplexing  problems,  with  his  incessant  toils,  was 
of  a  playful  spirit,  had  a  beautiful  family  life,  and 


WASHINGTON— LINCOLN— ROOSEVELT  27 

was  possibly  the  happiest  man  in  the  nation.  He  said 
he  was. 

These  three  national  heroes,  dissimilar  as  they 
were  in  earthly  circumstances  and  intellectual  char 
acteristics,  were  similar  in  many  regards;  in  all  of 
those  basic  elements  so  necessary  in  the  building  up 
of  individual  character  and  a  healthy  state.  The  three 
were  the  greatest-hearted  men  the  nation  ever  had. 
If  their  intellect  was  a  huge  mountain  losing  itself  in 
the  clouds,  their  affections  were  a  deep  blue,  boundless 
sea.  Washington,  Lincoln  and  Eoosevelt  were  super 
lative  in  their  truth  and  honesty.  Washington's 
hatchet  will  cut  its  way  down  the  centuries;  Honest 
Abe  will  for  ages  be  a  title  more  honorable  than  any 
king  ever  wore ;  Roosevelt,  ' '  clean  as  a  hound 's  tooth, ' ' 
will  be  known  for  generations  to  come. 

Another  element  of  immortality  this  trio  had  in 
common  was  absolute  unselfishness.  Neither  the 
Father  of  his  Country,  nor  the  great  Emancipator, 
nor  Roosevelt  ever  lived  a  day  for  himself.  Washing 
ton  always  lived  for  family,  fellows  and  country.  Lin 
coln  was  a  martyr  to  his  country,  and  so  was  Roose 
velt,  as  much  as  though  he  had  fallen  on  the  field  of 
battle.  The  fires  of  patriotism  literally  consumed 
him.  If  either  of  these  men  had  been*  capable  of  tell 
ing  a  white  lie,  or  had  failed  to  fight  the  wrong  at  any 
cost,  or  had  cherished  a  personal  motive  of  avarice  or 
inordinate  ambition,  he  might  have  gotten  to  be  Presi 
dent,  but  he  never  would  have  been  a  national  hero 
or  remembered  in  history. 

Our  three  heroes  were  similar  in  their  deep  religious 
instincts.  They  were  all  godly  men,  all  Christian 
men.  Each  of  these  three  captains  carried  the  ban 
ner  of  the  Cross.  Washington  set  a  beautiful  example 
to  the  new  republic  by  his  religious  devotion  and 


28  THEODORE    ROOSEVELT 

habit.  He  asserted  that  his  prayer  to  the  God  of  Bat 
tles  brought  help  in  the  conflict.  He  was  a  lifelong 
member  of  the  Episcopal  Church.  Lincoln  was  a  pro 
foundly  religious  man.  He  did  not  join  any  church, 
but  he  attended  church  services  regularly  and  was  a 
firm  believer  in  the  Bible  and  the  Christian  faith. 
Lincoln  once  told  Bishop  Simpson,  whose  Lectures  on 
the  state  of  the  country  during  the  Civil  War  were 
said  by  the  President  to  be  worth  100,000  men  to  the 
Union  army,  and  who  delivered  Lincoln's  funeral 
address,  that  he  felt  that  God  had  called  him  to  lead 
the  nation  in  its  tragical  time,  and  had  given  him 
wisdom,  courage,  strength  and  victory  in  the  conflict. 

Everybody  knows  that  Theodore  Roosevelt  was  in 
tensely  religious;  that  he  did  not  hesitate,  on  all 
proper  occasions,  to  announce  publicly  his  faith  in 
the  fundamental  doctrines  of  Christianity.  He  was 
a  devoted  member  of  the  Dutch  Reformed  Church  and 
attended  its  services  regularly.  He  told  me  that  his 
firm  faith  in  God,  and  his  actual  knowledge  of  Him 
had  been  the  chief  motive  in  his  individual  character 
and  his  public  service.  Some  think  it  smart  and  big 
to  doubt.  But  the  people  of  America  believe.  They 
want  the  human  element  in  their  heroes  and  the  super 
human  elements  as  well.  They  want  them  earthborn 
and  born  from  above  too.  It  will  take  a  nation  a  long 
time  to  die,  which  has  as  its  heroes  Washington,  Lin 
coln  and  Roosevelt,  the  crown  of  whose  greatness  was 
their  goodness. 

The  similarity  of  these  heroes,  in  those  moral  ele 
ments  without  which  there  can  be  no  real  manhood  in 
any  calling  or  position,  was  increased  by  the  law  of 
imitation.  Lincoln  tried  his  best  to  become  like 
Washington.  When  a  boy  he  came  across  a  life  of 
Washington  at  a  neighbor's  home  and  borrowed  it. 


WASHINGTON— LINCOLN— ROOSEVELT  29 

Reading  it  one  night,  tired  out,  he  tucked  the  book  in 
a  crack  between  the  logs.  That  night  a  rain  storm 
pelted  in  and  spoiled  it.  In  distress  he  hurried  over 
to  the  neighbors  and  said,  "See  what  has  happened. 
I  have  not  a  cent  in  the  world,  and  if  I. had  there  are 
no  books  for  sale  around  here.  What  shall  I  do? 
Now  take  the  price  of  it  out  of  my  hide."  The  man 
replied,  ''Abe,  you  pull  fodder  for  me  for  three  days 
and  you  may  have  it,  and  we  will  call  it  square/' 
And  he  did.  He  fairly  devoured  the  volume,  and  from 
that  day  his  thoughts  and  conduct  were  influenced  by 
those  of  Washington. 

Roosevelt  copied  Washington  and  Lincoln,  espe 
cially  the  latter.  Lincoln  appealed  to  every  faculty 
of  his  soul.  He  studied  his  character,  read  his 
speeches,  examined  his  administration,  marvelled  at 
his  statesmanship  and  tried  to  become  like  him.  He 
had  in  him,  by  nature,  many  of  the  qualities  of  Lin 
coln,  and  he  gained  others  by  a  lifelong  admiration 
and  imitation  of  him.  He  insisted  that  any  man  or 
party  which  had  strayed  away  from  the  principles 
advocated  by  Lincoln  was  on  the  wrong  track. 

In  1909  the  centenary  of  the  birth  of  Abraham  Lin 
coln  was  observed.  On  the  first  day  of  that  year 
President  Roosevelt  addressed  from  the  White  House 
to  Dr.  Shaw,  editor  of  the  Review  of  Reviews,  a  char 
acteristic  letter  in  which  he  commented  on  the  famous 
Bixby  letter  of  the  martyr  President.  This  letter  of 
President  Roosevelt  was  as  follows: 

THE  WHITE  HOUSE, 
WASHINGTON,  JANUARY  1,  1909. 
To  THE  EDITOR  OF  THE  Review  of  Reviews: 

The  deeds  and  words  of  the  great  men  of  the  nation,  and 
above  all  the  character  of  each  of  the  foremost  men  of  the 
nation,  are  one  and  all  assets  of  inestimable  value  to  the 


30  THEODORE    ROOSEVELT 

Republic.  Lincoln's  work  and  Lincoln's  words  should  be, 
and  I  think  more  and  more  are,  part  of  those  formative 
influences  which  tend  to  become  living  forces  for  good  citi 
zenship  among  our  people.  There  is  one  of  his  letters  which 
has  always  appealed  to  me  particularly.  It  is  the  one  run 
ning  as  follows: 

EXECUTIVE  MANSION, 
WASHINGTON,  NOVEMBEE  21,  1864. 
To  MBS.  BIXBY, 

Boston,  Mass. 

Dear  Madam:  I  have  been  shown,  in  the  files  of  the  War 
Department,  a  statement  of  the  Adjutant-General  of  Massa 
chusetts,  that  you  are  the  mother  of  five  sons  who  have 
died  gloriously  on  the  field  of  battle.  I  feel  how  weak  and 
fruitless  must  be  any  word  of  mine  which  should  attempt 
to  beguile  you  from  the  grief  of  a  loss  so  overwhelming. 
But  I  cannot  refrain  from  tendering  you  the  consolation 
that  may  be  found  in  the  thanks  of  the  Republic  they  died 
to  save.  I  pray  that  our  Heavenly  Father  may  assuage  the 
anguish  of  your  bereavement,  and  leave  you  only  the  cher 
ished  memory  of  the  loved  and  lost,  and  the  solemn  pride 
that  must  be  yours  to  have  laid  so  costly  a  sacrifice  on  the 
altar  of  freedom. 

Yours  very  sincerely  and  respectfully, 

A.  LINCOLN. 

Any  man  who  has  occupied  the  office  of  President  realizes 
the  incredible  amount  of  administrative  work  with  which 
the  President  has  to  deal  even  in  time  of  peace.  He  is  of 
necessity  a  very  busy  man,  a  much-driven  man,  from  whose 
mind  there  can  never  be  absent,  for  many  minutes  at  a  time, 
the  consideration  of  some  problem  of  importance,  or  of  some 
matter  of  less  importance  which  yet  causes  worry  and 
strain.  Under  such  circumstances,  it  is  not  easy  for  a  Presi 
dent,  even  in  times  of  peace,  to  turn  from  the  affairs  that 
are  of  moment  to  all  the  people  and  consider  affairs  that 
are  of  moment  to  but  one  person. 

While  this  is  true  of  times  of  peace,  it  is,  of  course,  in 
finitely  more  true  of  times  of  war.  No  President  who  has 
ever  sat  in  the  White  House  has  borne  the  burden  that 
Lincoln  bore,  or  been  under  the  ceaseless  strain  which  he 
endured.  It  did  not  let  up  by  day  or  by  night.  Ever  he 
had  to  consider  problems  of  the  widest  importance,  ever 


WASHINGTON— LINCOLN— ROOSEVELT  31 

to  run  risks  of  greatest  magnitude;  and  ever,  through  and 
across  his  plans  to  meet  these  great  dangers  and  responsi 
bilities,  was  shot  the  woof  of  an  infinite  number  of  small 
annoyances.  He  worked  out  his  great  task  while  unceas 
ingly  beset  by  the  need  of  attending  as  best  he  could  to  a 
multitude  of  small  tasks. 

It  is  a  touching  thing  that  the  great  leader,  while  thus 
driven  and  absorbed,  could  yet  so  often  turn  aside  for  the 
moment  to  do  some  deed  of  personal  kindness;  and  it  is  a 
fortunate  thing  for  the  nation  that  in  addition  to  doing  so 
well  each  deed,  great  or  small,  he  possessed  that  marvelous 
gift  of  expression  which  enabled  him,  quite  unconsciously, 
to  choose  the  very  words  best  fit  to  commemorate  each  deed. 
His  Gettysburg  speech  and  his  second  inaugural  are  two  of 
the  half-dozen  greatest  speeches  ever  made — I  am  tempted 
to  call  them  the  two  greatest  ever  made.  They  are  great  in 
their  wisdom,  and  dignity,  and  earnestness,  and  in  a  lofti 
ness  of  thought  and  expression  which  makes  them  akin  to 
the  utterances  of  the  prophets  of  the  Old  Testament. 

In  a  totally  different  way,  but  in  strongest  and  most 
human  fashion,  such  utterances  as  his  answer  to  the  ser- 
enaders  immediately  after  his  second  election,  and  his  let 
ter,  which  I  have  quoted  above,  appeal  to  us  and  make  our 
hearts  thrill.  The  mother  of  whom  he  wrote  stood  in  our 
sense  on  a  loftier  plane  of  patriotism  than  the  mighty 
President  himself.  Her  memory,  and  the  memory  of  her 
sons  whom  she  bore  for  the  Union,  should  be  kept  green  in 
our  minds;  for  she  and  they,  in  life  and  death,  typified  all 
that  is  best  and  highest  in  our  national  existence.  The 
deed  itself,  and  the  words  of  the  great  man  which  com 
memorate  that  deed,  should  form  one  of  those  heritages  for 
all  Americans  which  it  is  of  inestimable  consequence  that 
America  should  possess. 

THEODOBE  ROOSEVELT. 

In  this  letter  Mr.  Roosevelt  thinks  Lincoln's  Ad 
dress  at  Gettysburg  and  his  Second  Inaugural  Ad 
dress  are  the  greatest  ones  ever  delivered.  He  him 
self  has  some  addresses  whose  periods  are  in  the  class 
of  Lincoln's  masterpieces.  One  of  these  is  this  de 
scription  of  Lincoln: 


32  THEODORE    ROOSEVELT 

"After  long  years  of  iron  effort,  and  of  failure  that  came 
more  often  than  victory,  he  at  last  rose  to  the  leadership  of 
the  Republic,  at  the  moment  when  that  leadership  had  be 
come  the  stupendous  world-task  of  the  time.  He  grew  to 
know  greatness,  but  never  ease.  Success  came  to  him,  but 
never  happiness,  save  that  which  springs  from  doing  well 
a  painful  and  vital  task.  Power  was  his,  but  not  pleasure. 
The  furrows  deepened  on  his  brow,  but  his  eyes  were  un- 
dimmed  by  either  hate  or  fear.  His  gaunt  shoulders  were 
bowed,  but  his  steel  thews  never  faltered  as  he  bore  for  a 
burden  the  destinies  of  his  people.  His  great  and  tender 
heart  shrank  from  giving  pain;  and  the  task  allotted  him 
was  to  pour  out  like  water  the  life-blood  of  the  young  men, 
and  to  feel  in  his  every  fiber  the  sorrow  of  the  women.  Dis 
aster  saddened  but  never  dismayed  him.  As  the  red  years 
of  war  went  by  they  found  him  ever  doing  his  duty  in  the 
present,  ever  facing  the  future  with  fearless  front,  high  of 
heart,  andxdauntless  of  soul.  Unbroken  by  hatred,  unshaken 
by  scorn,  he  worked  and  suffered  for  the  people.  Triumph 
was  his  at  the  last ;  and  barely  had  he  tasted  it  before  mur 
der  found  him,  and  the  kindly,  patient,  fearless  eyes  were 
closed  forever." 

Roosevelt's  comparison  of  Washington  and  Lincoln 
will  make  a  fitting  close  for  this  chapter.  It  is  this: 

"As  a  people  we  are  indeed  beyond  measure  fortunate  in 
the  characters  of  the  two  greatest  of  our  public  men,  Wash 
ington  and  Lincoln.  Widely  though  they  differed  in  ex 
ternals,  the  Virginia-landed  gentleman  and  the  Kentucky 
backwoodsman,  they  were  alike  in  essentials,  they 
were  alike  in  the  great  qualities  which  made  each  able 
to  render  service  to  his  nation,  and  to  all  mankind, 
such  as  no  other  man  of  his  generation  could  or 
did  render.  Each  had  lofty  ideals,  but  each  in  striving 
to  attain  these  lofty  ideals  was  guided  by  the  soundest  com 
mon  sense.  Each  possessed  inflexible  courage  in  adversity, 
and  a  soul  wholly  unspoiled  by  prosperity.  Each  possessed 
all  the  gentler  virtues  commonly  exhibited  by  good  men 
who  lack  rugged  strength  of  character.  Each  possessed,  also, 
all  the  strong  qualities  commonly  exhibited  by  those  tow 
ering  masters  of  mankind  who  have,  too  often,  shown  them 
selves  devoid  of  so  much  as  the  understanding  of  the  words 


WASHINGTON— LINCOLN— ROOSEVELT  33 

by  which  we  signify  the  qualities  of  duty,  of  mercy,  of  de 
votion  to  the  right,  of  lofty  disinterestedness  in  battling 
for  the  good  of  others.  There  have  been  other  men  as  great 
and  other  men  as  good;  but  in  all  the  history  of  mankind 
there  are  no  other  two  great  men  as  good  as  these,  no  other 
two  good  men  as  great.  Widely  though  the  problems  of  to 
day  differ  from  the  problems  set  for  solution  to  Washington 
when  he  founded  this  nation,  to  Lincoln  when  he  saved  it 
and  freed  the  slave,  yet  the  qualities  they  showed  in  meet 
ing  these  problems  are  exactly  the  same  as  those  we  should 
show  in  doing  our  work  to-day." 

This  thing  he  did,  exhibited  the  same  qualities  that 
Washington  and  Lincoln  did  in  the  settlement  of  the 
problems  of  his  time  and  with  them  makes  up  the  trio 
of  immortal  American  heroes. 


HIS  BIETHPLACE  AND  BOYHOOD 


CHAPTER  II 
HIS  BIRTHPLACE  AND  BOYHOOD 

AS  the  birthplace  of  Theodore  Roosevelt  is  only 
ten  minutes'  walk  from  where  I  am  writing,  I 
thought  I  would  go  over  and  see  what  it  looked 
like  and  describe  it  outside  and  in,  as  a  proper  setting 
for  this  chapter  on  his  birth  and  childhood.  To  my 
deep  regret  I  found  that  the  old  house  had  been  torn 
down  and  a  little  two-story  brick  business  building 
had  been  put  up  in  its  place.  I  entered  the  store  and 
asked  the  man  if  that  was  the  site  on  which  Roosevelt 
was  born.  He  said,  "Yes,"  and  that  the  old  house 
had  been  taken  away  about  a  year  before.  I  asked 
him  if  any  part  of  the  old  building  had  been  left  in 
the  new.  He  said,  "No."  I  continued,  "Is  there 
not,  about  the  place,  a  window  out  of  which  Theodore 
looked,  or  a  piece  of  flooring  over  which  he  romped, 
or  a  banister  down  which  he  slid?"  He  answered, 
"Not  one!"  "I  am  sorry,"  I  said,  "for  there  are 
thousands  of  people  who  would  cross  a  continent  or 
come  the  length  of  an  ocean  to  look  at  the  place  where 
Theodore  Roosevelt  was  born,  and  pay  their  homage 
afc  this  shrine." 

Well,  just  here  in  this  sweatshop  district,  which 
sixty  years  ago  was  a  rich,  fashionable,  residential 
neighborhood,  here  at  No.  28  East  20th  Street,  just  off 
Broadway,  New  York  City,  Theodore  Roosevelt  was 

37 


38  THEODORE    ROOSEVELT 

born  October  27,  1858.  At  his  advent  no  bells  were 
rung,  no  whistles  blown,  no  newspaper  mentioned  the 
fact,  no  president  or  king  sent  congratulations.  It 
is  not  likely  that  many  persons  living  on  the  same 
block,  even,  ever  heard  that  such  a  child  had  been 
born,  so  silent  and  small  are  the  beginnings  of  great 
ness,  are  the  beginnings  of  life  itself.  I  suspect  that 
if  any  one  had  been  there,  that  beautiful  October  day, 
with  spirit  ears  keen  enough,  he  would  have  heard  the 
angels,  with  their  harps,  serenading  the  child  that 
heaven  had  sent  to  earth.  So  on  this  little  piece  of 
ground,  a  few  feet  front  and  a  few  feet  deep,  was  born 
the  babe  that  grew  to  be  the  giant  who  set  all  the 
bells  to  ringing,  the  whistles  to  blowing,  the  bands  to 
playing,  the  children  to  laughing,  the  multitude  to 
shouting,  the  battle-drums  to  beating,  and  the  millions 
to  practical  service  for  their  fellowmen  and  for  the 
public  good.  The  old  birthplace,  four  stories  high, 
was  the  foundation  and  first  story  of  the  magnificent 
structure  of  the  Roosevelt  character  and  life. 

This  old  building  housed  Roosevelt's  home.  The 
material  structure  has  gone,  but  the  home  was  a  spiri 
tual  force  that  can  never  be  destroyed.  Everything 
that  lives  has  a  home,  a  place  where  it  may  abide,  de 
velop  its  growth,  and  prepare  for  its  mission  on  the 
earth.  This  home  on  20th  Street  was  an  ideal  home 
before  Theodore  was  born  into  it. 

Roosevelt  was  born  to  greatness.  He  inherited 
qualities  that  carried  him  to  his  heights  of  service  and 
fame.  It  is  a  law  of  nature  that  life  stamps  its  image 
on  its  offspring.  It  is  so  with  the  grains,  the  herds, 
the  flocks  and  the  tribes  of  men.  Theodore  Roosevelt 
had  a  right  to  be  great.  He  came  of  splendid  stock  on 
both  sides.  For  two  hundred  .years  the  name  of  Roose 
velt  has  been  prominent  and  popular  in  many  forms 


HIS    BIRTHPLACE    AND    BOYHOOD      39 

of  material,  intellectual,  moral  and  political  endeavors 
in  New  York  City.  The  first  of  the  name,  Claas  Mar- 
tenzen  van  Roosevelt,  came  from  Holland  to  New 
Amsterdam  in  1649.  Theodore's  great  great  grand 
father  was  a  private  soldier  in  the  Revolutionary 
War. 

His  great  grandfather  was  a  prosperous  hard 
ware  merchant,  and  in  the  War  of  Independence  gave 
his  services  to  the  colonists  without  compensation.  His 
grandfather  was  a  man  of  uncommon  genius,  one  of 
the  great  inventors  of  the  world.  During  the  Revo 
lutionary  War,  he  ran  a  paddle  boat  propelled  by 
hickory  and  whalebone  springs.  At  the  close  of  the 
war  he  settled  in  New  York,  interesting  himself  in 
copper  mines,  rolling-mills  and  the  like.  He  became 
associated  with  Robert  Fulton  in  the  plan  to  drive  a 
boat  with  steam  paddles.  It  was  disputed  then,  and 
has  been  since,  whether  Fulton  or  Roosevelt  was  the 
discoverer  of  the  steamboat.  Fulton  got  the  patent. 
Roosevelt  contested  it,  but  gave  up  the  contest  be 
cause  it  was  so  expensive.  He  united  with  Fulton  in 
a  plan  to  navigate  the  Western  waters  with  the  steam 
boat,  and  he  himself  built  and  took  from  Pittsburg 
to  New  Orleans,  the  first  steamer  whose  paddles  ever 
disturbed  the  great  waters  of  the  Ohio  and  Mississippi. 

Theodore's  father,  whose  name  was  Theodore,  was  a 
remarkable  man,  a  wealthy  glass  merchant  on  Maiden 
Lane,  prominent  and  influential  in  city  and  national 
politics,  and  a  founder  of  some  of  the  most  important 
educational  and  benevolent  institutions  in  the  city. 
He  was  especially  devoted  to  any  enterprises  relating 
to  the  children  of  the  poor ;  was  a  prominent  member 
of  the  Dutch  Reformed  Church,  and  was  respected 
and  loved  universally.  At  his'  death,  the  flags  in 
New  York  City  were  dropped  to  half-mast  in  sorrow. 


40  THEODORE    ROOSEVELT 

Theodore's  stock  on  his  mother's  side  was  just  as 
good.  His  great  great  grandfather,  Archibald  Bul 
lock,  was  a  member  of  the  Continental  Congress  and 
the  first  State  Governor  of  Georgia.  His  mother's 
brother,  James  D.  Bullock,  was  a  prominent  officer  in 
the  Confederate  navy,  who  arranged  for  the  purchase 
of  the  privateers  Florida  and  Alabama.  His  mother, 
Miss  Martha  Bullock,  was  married  to  Theodore  Roose 
velt,  Sr.,  at  her  father's  home  at  Roswell,  Cobb  Coun 
ty,  Ga.,  in  1853.  The  stern,  rugged,  masterful  ele 
ments  of  the  Holland-Dutch,  Theodore  Roosevelt  got 
from  his  father.  The  beautiful,  tender,  loving  nature, 
which  drew  a  whole  nation  to  him,  he  got  from  his 
mother,  a  lovely  Southern  woman.  His  father  was  a 
hunter,  was  passionately  fond  of  a  horse,  and  was  a 
good  driver  and  rider.  The  elder  Roosevelt  was  an 
ideal  family  man  and  a  devoted  worker  in  the 
church. 

The  young  Theodore  inherited  those  traits  which  de 
veloped  into  the  elements  of  his  future  greatness.  His 
mother  was  a  polite,  magnetic,  affectionate,  loving 
woman  with  the  warmth  of  hospitality  and  the  simple, 
sincere  piety  of  the  sunny  South.  She  had  much 
native  humor.  The  boy  inherited  from  her  those  less 
vigorous  virtues  that  made  his  life  so  beautiful,  the 
gentleness  that  had  so  much  to  do  in  making  him 
great.  One  of  the  most  eloquent  specimens  of  Ameri 
can  literature  was  the  reference  of  Henry  W.  Grady, 
the  exponent  of  the  new  South  at  the  New  England 
dinner,  as  he  proclaimed  that  Lincoln's  greatness  was 
the  natural  mixture  of  the  Puritan  and  Cavalier. 
Similarly  Theodore  Roosevelt's  greatness  exhibited 
the  moral  and  religious  influence  of  the  Holland- 
Dutch,  and  the  chivalry  of  the  beautiful  Southland. 

Just  as  soon  as  the  boy  Theodore  had  learned  to 


©  Underwood   &  Underwood,  N.   Y. 
AS  GOVERNOR  OF  THE  STATE  OF  NEW  YORK. 


HIS   BIRTHPLACE    AND   BOYHOOD      41 

walk  and  talk,  both  parents  set  themselves  to  the  task 
of  teaching  him  the  strictest  morality;  the  necessity 
of  constant  truth-telling ;  the  sin  of  taking  that  which 
belongs  to  another ;  the  meanness  of  wanting  the  best 
of  everything  for  himself ;  the  beauty  of  giving  some 
thing  he  had  to  others  and  making  others  happy ;  the 
necessity  of  personal  purity  and  the  duty  to  love  God. 
The  man  four  square,  the  man  demanding  a  square 
deal  of  every  one,  and  for  every  one,  was  only  living 
out  the  sterling  moral  principles  his  father  and 
mother  had  taught  him  when  a  boy. 

There  was  no  man  in  public  life  who  seemed  more 
a  product  of  our  popular  school  system  than  Mr. 
Roosevelt.  Yet  he  never  attended  the  public  schools 
a  day  in  his  life.  It  would  be  thought  that  his  per 
fectly  democratic  spirit  could  have  been  produced 
only  by  our  common  school  system.  Born  and  bred 
an  aristocrat,  his  father  was  democratic  in  spirit,  and 
he  himself,  by  his  life  in  the  West  and  on  the  ranch 
and  in  the  field  of  politics,  became  an  ideal  democrat, 
in  spite  of  the  fact  that  he  missed  a  common  school 
education.  He,  however,  sent  all  of  his  own  children 
to  the  public  schools,  was  one  of  the  most  earnest  and 
efficient  friends  of  the  popular  school  system,  and  was 
the  idol  of  the  teachers  and  school  children  of  the 
land. 

Though  Theodore  did  not  go  to  the  public  schools, 
he  did  not  lack  a  preliminary  education  by  any  means. 
It  must  be  remembered  that  he  was  the  son  of  a  rich 
man,  and  that  rich  people  in  those  days  had  their  own 
way  of  educating  their  children.  The  mother  was  a 
Southern  woman  who  believed  much  in  the  personal 
influence  of  motherhood  and  home  in  the  training  of 
their  boy,  and  she  started  in  to  teach  him  herself,  to 
read  and  write  and  spell  and  figure.  And  her  sister 


42  THEODORE    ROOSEVELT 

living  in  the  family  also  acted  as  a  teacher.  And, 
when  he  advanced  somewhat  in  his  studies,  they  got 
a  tutor  for  him,  and  he  was  taught  at  home  till  he 
went  to  college,  with  the  exception  of  a  few  months 
when  he  attended  a  private  school. 

The  parents  had  a  university  in  the  home.  It  was 
the  library.  Books,  books,  books,  the  boy  was  fed  on 
them.  He  was  brought  up  on  them.  Before  he  could 
read,  his  mother  and  others  in  the  family  read  to 
him.  They  read  tales  of  adventure,  things  about  ani 
mals,  stories  of  hunting  big  game,  of  Indian  life, 
things  about  smart  and  good  boys  and  girls.  When  he 
wore  kilt  skirts  and  a  single  curl  on  the  top  of  his 
head,  Theodore  used  to  drag  about  a  book  too  big  for 
him  to  handle,  asking  some  one  to  read  to  him  from 
it.  It  was  Livingstone's  "Travels  and  Researches  in 
South  Africa. ' '  And  the  child  was  all  waked  up  with 
interest  in  explorations  and  experiences  of  this  great 
man.  Who  knows  how  much  of  the  plan  for  the 
African  trip  of  Roosevelt  the  great  explorer  and 
hunter  may  have  been  laid  in  the  mind  of  that  boy 
at  home  by  the  story  of  the  mountains,  the  rivers,  the 
people,  and  the  wild  beasts  of  Africa,  and  of  the  hero 
who  devoted  his  life  to  the  task  of  blessing  and  re 
deeming  its  millions? 

The  mother  entertained  her  child  with  stories  of  the 
Southland,  of  hunting  opossums  and  coons  and  wild 
turkey  and  foxes ;  and  read  stories  of  big  game  hunt 
ing  to  him  of  deer  and  bear.  She  was  unwittingly 
raising  a  man  for  the  chase. 

When  the  boy  got  old  enough  to  read  for  himself, 
they  fairly  surrounded  him  with  books.  It  was  no 
accident  that  books  on  nature  study  were  placed  in 
his  hands.  It  was  done  on  purpose,  not  only  to  enter 
tain  him,  but  to  make  a  naturalist  of  him.  So  when 


HIS   BIRTHPLACE   AND   BOYHOOD      43 

the  boy  went  out  even  to  play  in  the  country  he  took 
notice  of  the  flowers,  the  ants,  and  bugs  and  lizards, 
and  fishes  and  birds;  he  knew  something  about  them 
and  wanted  to  find  out  more,  and  as  he  grew  in  years 
he  made  them  his  study,  his  companions  and  his  joy. 

They  placed  in  his  hands  also  magazines,  which 
were  bright,  spicy  and  morally  healthful.  His  parents 
were  much  wiser  than  they  knew,  when  they  im 
planted  in  his  childish  heart  this  appetite  for  reading 
and  satisfied  it  so  well.  He  kept  up  the  habit  of  in 
cessant  reading  of  books  at  Harvard  and  throughout 
his  life,  and  became  one  of  the  most  omnivorous 
readers  and  most  well  informed  o'f  public  men. 

It  was  a  fortunate  thing  for  the  making  of  this 
great  man  that  Theodore's  parents  were  so  full  of  the 
playful  spirit  themselves  and  saw  the  absolute  neces 
sity  for  amusement  and  exercise  for  their  children. 
They  were  allowed  to  run  and  jump  and  howl  at  the 
top  of  their  voices;  they  were  taught  games  indoors 
and  out-of-doors.  Though  their  home  was  in  the  city, 
they  spent  at  least  four  months  of  the  year  at  some 
country  seat  on  purpose  to  give  the  children  oppor 
tunity  for  recreation  and  for  the  development  of  their 
physical  strength.  What  glorious  times  the  children 
had  roaming  through  the  woods,  picking  flowers, 
catching  fish  out  of  the  streams,  rowing  boats,  watch 
ing  the  birds  and  having  companionship  with  every 
thing  that  God  has  made !  They  kicked  up  their  heels 
at  every  kind  of  outdoor  sport  that  could  be  imagined, 
had  piles  of  fun  and  grew  and  were  supremely  happy. 
They  had  every  conceivable  kind  of  pet — cat,  dogs, 
horses,  and  others.  Theodore  had  a  sorrel  Shetland 
pony  called  General  Grant;  and  when  his  sister  read 
about  General  Grant  in  her  history  of  the  Civil  War, 


44  THEODORE    ROOSEVELT 

she  wondered  why  it  was  that  they  happened  to  call 
this  general  after  their  pony. 

Theodore  the  boy  did  not  have  very  many  play 
mates  outside  of  his  own  home  and  circle  of  relatives. 
His  parents  were  very  careful  of  the  company  he 
kept,  but  they  were  quite  democratic  and  allowed  him 
to  select  his  own  chums  according  to  his  taste.  They 
seemed  as  well  satisfied  if  he  selected  a  chum  in  or 
dinary  circumstances,  or  a  poor  boy,  as  though  he  had 
chosen  a  son  of  wealth  as  his  companion. 

For  ten  years  I  have  been  well  acquainted  with 
one  of  Theodore  Roosevelt's  boy  chums,  John  W. 
McNichols,  of  Dobbs  Ferry,  New  York,  a  sturdy,  hon 
est  village  blacksmith.  We  were  brought  together  by 
our  mutual  friendships  for  our  national  hero.  He 
had  told  me  so  many  things  about  having  played  as  a 
boy  with  young  Theodore,  that  I  asked  him  to  tell  me 
a  few  things  which  I  could  put  in  my  book  about 
him.  He  said,  "I  will  count  it  a  pleasure  and  an 
honor  to  do  so."  Then  he  went  on  to  say:  "Theo 
dore's  father  went  into  the  fine  Pa  ton  Place  on  the 
hill  at  Dobbs  Ferry  during  the  summer  of  1872.  I 
was  thirteen  and  he  a  year  older.  The  way  I  hap 
pened  to  get  acquainted  with  him  was,  that  his  father 
had  twenty-two  horses  (you  know  he  drove  four-in- 
hand)  and  my  uncle,  a  blacksmith,  shod  his  horses 
for  him.  The  coachman  usually  brought  the  horses 
down  and  took  them  back,  but  there  were  three  ponies 
in  the  stable.  One  belonged  to  the  boy,  Theodore,  and 
the  other  two  to  his  sisters.  Theodore  would  go  down 
to  the  shop  to  get  one  of  the  ponies  and  I  would  ride 
the  other  back  with  him. 

* '  One  day  I  was  sent  up  to  get  one  of  the  ponies  and 
I  saw  the  boy  Teddy  alone  on  the  pond  in  a  nice  little 
white  skiff.  I  went  down  to  the  shore  and  he  rowed 


HIS   BIRTHPLACE    AND    BOYHOOD      45 

to  where  I  was  and  asked  me  if  I  would  not  get  in 
and  take  a  ride  with  him.  That  is  how  we  got  ac 
quainted  at  first.  And  after  that  I  did  not  have  to 
ask  to  get  into  the  skiff,  but  he  told  me  to  get  into  it 
and  take  a  row  any  time,  whether  he  was  there  or  not. 
We  had  such  fine  times  rowing  that  skiff.  I  often 
rowed  him  and  he  would  sit  in  the  stern  with  his 
back  to  me  and  drag  his  feet  in  the  water  as  a  rudder. 
We  used  to  get  very  warm  those  summer  days  and 
very  thirsty.  At  such  times  we  would  pull  the  boat 
out  of  the  pond  into  a  little  stream  up  to  a  spring 
which  was  the  source  of  the  pond,  and  there  drank 
to  our  fill  of  the  cool  water.  I  got  a  cocoanut  shell, 
sawed  it  in  two  halves  and  made  two  drinking-cups 
of  it;  one  I  marked  *T.  R.'  for  him  and  the  other 
'J.  N.'  for  me.  (My  name  is  McNichols,  but  they 
always  called  me  Nichols  in  those  days,  and  hence  I 
marked  it  *J.  N.')-  We  had  a  little  place  where  we 
kept  those  cups,  and  whenever  we  rowed,  and  that  was 
nearly  every  day,  we  went  to  the  spring  and  drank 
out  of  our  cups.  Oh,  but  that  water  tasted  mighty 
good !  It  tastes  good  now  as  I  think  of  it. 

* l  We  were  both  good  swimmers  for  boys.  We  swam 
in  the  pond,  and  when  he  came  down  to  the  shop  and 
the  horses  were  not  ready,  he  and  I  used  to  slip  off 
down  to  the  beach  behind  the  old  livery  stable  and 
swim  in  the  Hudson. 

"He  was  out  one  day  in  his  little  skiff  paddling 
and  playing  around  and  I  was  at  the  shore  watching 
him.  He  saw  two  wealthy  neighbors  driving  along 
the  road  not  far  from  the  pond,  and  just  as  they  came 
opposite  to  it  he  pretended  to  make  a  misstep  and 
turned  the  boat  upside  down.  He  did  not  come  up, 
and  the  rich  neighbors  ran  frantically  to  the  edge  of 
the  pond  and  were  making  strenuous  efforts  to  rescue 


46  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

his  dead  body.  Just  then  he  came  out  from  under 
the  upturned  skiff  and  laughed  at  them,  and  they 
laughed  harder  at  each  other  and  went  back  to  their 
carriage.  He  was  full  of  all  kinds  of  funny  boyish 
pranks. 

"Theodore  always  went  down  with  his  father  in 
their  depot  wagon,  as  they  called  it  in  those  days,  to 
the  8.15  train  for  New  York.  On  the  way  back  from 
the  train  he  had  the  coachman  drive  around  to  the 
shop  to  get  me  to  go  out  to  the  place  and  get  the 
pony  to  shoe.  I  had  already  started  to  school  and  my 
uncle  told  him  if  he  would  hurry  he  could  catch  me 
before  I  got  to  school  and  could  take  me  out  with 
him.  Sure  enough  he  got  me  just  before  entering  the 
school,  and  I  went  out  with  him.  As  we  were  driv 
ing  up  to  go  around  to  the  stable,  Mr.  Teddy  told 
the  coachman  to  stop  right  there,  and  he  took  the 
livery  of  the  coachman  and  put  it  on  himself,  the 
coat  all  buttoned  up,  and  the  hat  in  its  place.  I 
started  to  get  off  the  box  and  he  said,  'No,  you  stay, 
I  want  you  as  my  footman.'  I  said  to  him,  'Ted,  I 
got  this  old  hickory  shirt  on  and  this  little  straw  hat 
and  your  mother  will  get  on  to  us/  He  said,  'Do 
what  I  tell  you  to  do.  You  are  my  footman  to-day.' 

"He  drove  around  \o  the  front  of  the  house  and 
saw  a  girl  on  the  porch  sweeping,  and  he  called  out 
in  a  loud  voice,  'Is  Mrs.  Roosevelt  in?'  The  girl 
said,  'Yes.'  He  continued,  'Go  ask  her  to  come  out 
and  take  a  ride;  I  am  ready.  Tell  her  if  she  does 
not  come  out  now  she  cannot  have  any  ride  at  all 
to-day.'  The  girl  turned  to  carry  the  word  to  Mrs. 
Roosevelt,  when  she  put  her  head  out  of  an  upstairs 
window,  called  to  the  girl  and  said,  'Who  is  that  per 
son  that  is  calling  for  me  ? '  She  answered,  '  I  am  not 
just  sure,  but  I  think  it  is  Mr.  Theodore. '  I  heard  her 


HIS    BIRTHPLACE    AND   BOYHOOD      47 

say  as  we  were  driving  off  to  the  barn,  'Well,  who 
ever  it  is,  that  is  about  the  finest-looking  rig  that 
has  come  to  this  house  this  summer. ' 

' '  Teddy  had  a  nice  little  gun  and  we  took  turns  in 
practice  shooting.  We  used  to  play  ball  there  and 
catch  it  and  knock  it  with  a  bat,  though  there  were 
not  enough  boys  in  that  neighborhood  to  make  a 
game  of  baseball. 

"When  he  was  Governor  of  the  State  he  rode  with 
his  staff  from  New  York  through  Dobbs  Ferry  to  the 
camp  at  Peekskill.  I  knew  he  was  coming  by  and 
hung  out  a  big  flag  at  my  blacksmith  shop  and  stood 
out  in  front  of  it  to  hail  him  as  he  went  by.  He  rode 
up  to  where  I  was,  took  me  by  the  hand  and  said, 
'John,  I  remember  you  well.  We  had  good  old  times 
the  summer  we  were  boys  together/ 

"When  he  was  elected  President  the  second  term  I 
concluded  I  would  write  him  a  letter  of  congratula 
tion.  I  went  to  the  bank  and  got  a  sheet  of  paper 
with  the  bank  heading  on  it  and  wrote  him  a  letter 
reminding  him  of  the  good  times  we  had  had  as  boys 
together,  never  thinking  that  any  notice  would  be 
paid  to  it ;  but  within  three  days  I  got  a  letter  from 
his  secretary,  Mr.  William  Loeb,  Jr.,  saying  that  the 
President  received  my  letter  and  would  answer  it  per 
sonally.  In  just  a  few  days  I  received  a  letter  re 
ferring  to  that  glorious  summer  we  had  together  and 
he  also  sent  me  a  large  photograph  of  himself  to  John 
W.  McNichols  from  Theodore  Roosevelt,  in  his  own 
handwriting.  How  proud  I  was  of  it  and  how  proud 
I  was  to  show  it  to  my  friends,  some  of  whom  thought 
I  was  half  inclined  to  stretch  things  a  little  when  I 
talked  of  having  the  boy,  Theodore  Roosevelt,  as  my 
chum. 

"I  took  a  piece  of  the  finest  steel  I  could  find  and 


48  THEODORE    ROOSEVELT 

hammered  on  my  own  anvil  a  horseshoe  for  good 
luck.  It  was  about  the  size  of  a  shoe  that  an  ordinary 
saddle  horse  would  wear.  I  plated  it  four  times  with 
gold  and  I  put  an  inscription  on  it  including  his 
name  and  mine,  and  the  date,  and  sent  it  to  him  as 
a  reminder  of  those  grand  four  months  of  fun  be 
tween  May  and  October,  1872.  I  received  a  letter 
from  him,  thanking  me  from  the  bottom  of  his  heart 
and  saying  that  he  would  keep  It  as  one  of  his  own 
precious  treasures  as  long  as  he  lived. ' ' 

Poor  Theodore  had  a  serious  handicap  in  the  asthma 
which  attacked  him  very  early  and  remained  with 
him  through  his  college  days  and  for  some  years 
after.  He  drove  it  out  by  his  vigorous  ranch  life. 
The  singular  solicitude  which  an  invalid  always 
awakens  was  felt  by  Theodore's  father  and  mother. 
His  father  often  carried  him  upstairs  in  his  arms,  and 
when  the  little  fellow  would  wheeze  in  his  sleep  it 
easily  awoke  father  and  mother,  who  hurried  to  his 
bed  to  help  him  if  possible  in  his  paroxysms  of  pain 
and  choking.  And  sometimes  they  would  find  him  sit 
ting  up  in  the  bed  with  his  elbows  on  his  knees  try 
ing  to  get  his  breath.  Many  a  time  between  two  and 
four  o'clock  in  the  morning,  when  his  spells  were  the 
worst,  his  father  would  hitch  up  and  drive  the  boy 
over  the  country  roads  to  give  him  fresh  air  and 
some  relief. 

This  persistent  asthma  and  the  nervousness  which 
was  the  result,  or  possibly  the  cause  of  it,  made  him 
quite  weak  for  his  age.  When  he  came  in  contact 
with  the  few  playmates  he  had,  he  found  that  those 
of  the  same  size  and  age  could  thrash  him  easily. 
This  mortified  him  very  much.  He  resolved  that  he 
would  build  up  a  strong  body  by  exercise,  not  only 
that  he  might  be  healthy  and  grow  up  to  be  a  useful 


HIS    BIRTHPLACE   AND   BOYHOOD      49 

man,  but  also  that  he  might  be  able  to  protect  him 
self,  physically,  against  any  kind  of  ill-treatment  or 
injustice.  He  talked  the  matter  over  with  his  father 
and  his  father  consented  to  have  a  man  give  him  box 
ing  lessons.  It  so  chanced  that  that  teacher  was  a 
professional  pugilist.  The  boy  liked  the  sport  amaz 
ingly  and  grew  strong  on  it,  practised  it  at  Harvard 
and  through  the  rest  of  his  life,  and  was  one  of  the 
most  enthusiastic  champions  of  that  kind  of  sport  in 
the  United  States.  This  boxing  in  boyhood,  while  it 
developed  his  strength  and  mitigated  his  attacks  of 
asthma,  did  not  entirely  eradicate  it.  The  deep  deter 
mination  with  which  this  slim,  sick,  weak  boy  devel 
oped  himself  into  one  of  the  finest  athletes  and  strong 
est  men  in  the  nation,  was  the  same  force  of  will 
which  enabled  him  to  triumph  over  ten  thousand  hin 
drances  which  were  piled  up  in  his  pathway  to  his 
journey's  end. 

How  touching  was  the  affection  of  the  father  for 
Theodore  and  how  perfectly  that  affection  was  recip 
rocated  by  him.  The  Greatest  of  All,  in  teaching  men 
to  pray,  said,  '  *  Say  Our  Father, ' '  because  he  thought 
that  the  word  father  came  nearer  to  that  of  God  than 
any  other  one.  In  the  physical  support,  in  the  edu 
cation  furnished,  in  the  amusement  supplied,  in  the 
genuine  delights  furnished,  in  the  great  moral  prin 
ciples  inculcated,  and  in  the  personal  affection  lav 
ished,  he  was  to  the  boy's  mind  a  type  of  the  Heavenly 
Father.  For  he  said  of  him,  "He  was  the  best  man 
I  ever  knew.7' 

The  affection  of  the  mother  for  Theodore  was  pa 
thetic.  Her  boy,  her  bright  boy,  her  sick  boy,  her 
good  boy,  was  ever  so  much  dearer  to  her  than  her 
own  life ;  and  Theodore  fairly  worshipped  her.  When 
only  nine  or  ten  years  of  age,  he  kept  a  diary.  On 


50  THEODORE    ROOSEVELT 

one  of  the  pages  he  wrote  that  he  had  had  a  cholera 
morbus  the  night  before  and  a  nightmare,  that  the 
devil  had  taken  him  up  and  carried  him  away,  but  he 
continued  that  he  felt  the  delicate  touch  of  his 
mother's  fingers  and  that  made  him  better. 

The  father  and  mother  of  Theodore  were  very  care 
ful  in  his  religious  instruction.  They  taught  him  that 
the  Bible  was  the  book  of  books ;  that  talking  to  God 
was  as  real  as  talking  to  people,  and  that  to  be  a 
consistent  Christian  was  to  be  the  greatest  thing  in 
life,  and  to  include  about  every  other  thing.  Family 
prayers  led  by  the  father  were  just  as  regular  as  the 
breakfast  on  the  table,  and  the  children  were  taught 
at  a  very  early  age  that  there  was  a  real  relation  be 
tween  them  and  the  God  of  heaven.  The  mother 
taught  Theodore  at  her  knee  the  little  prayer,  ''Now 
I  lay  me  down  to  sleep,"  and  other  prayers  as  well. 
Sometimes  the  children  were  allowed  a  little  latitude 
of  extemporaneous  prayer.  On  one  occasion  Theodore 
availed  himself  of  this  liberty  to  a  large  degree. 

His  mother  had  disciplined  him  in  some  way  for 
some  misconduct,  and  Theodore  thought  unjustly. 
And  so  when  he  came  to  his  prayer  before  going  to 
bed  he  broke  out  in  a  request  that  God  would  bless 
the  Union  army  and  give  it  success.  He  gave  his 
mother  this  piece  of  his  mind  under  the  pretense  of 
prayer,  because  he  knew  that  she  was  a  pronounced 
Confederate,  and  he  took  this  means  of  getting  even 
with  her.  She  was  so  full  of  humor  that  she  turned 
her  face  away  so  that  he  might  not  see  her  laugh. 
Bringing  her  face  around  to  him  seriously,  she  told 
him  that  she  would  let  him  off  this  time  if  he  would 
agree  not  to  do  so  again.  Powerful  as  was  the 
father's  religious  influence  over  Theodore,  that  of  his 
mother  was  just  as  great.  If  father  was  the  name 


HIS   BIRTHPLACE    AND    BOYHOOD      51 

most  like  God  to  Roosevelt,  mother  was  a  name  next 
to  that  of  Heaven  to  him.  With  his  splendid  lineage, 
with  his  mental  ability,  with  all  the  books,  and  amuse 
ments,  and  earthly  affections,  it  was  the  religion  of  the 
old  home  that  made  the  Theodore  Roosevelt  the  nation 
knew. 

Theodore 's  first  handicap  was  the  asthma ;  the  sec 
ond  handicap  was  the  fact  that  he  was  born  in  a  rich 
man's  home.  He  is  the  first  very  rich  man's  son  who 
ever  became  President.  All  virtue  does  not  inhere 
in  those  that  are  poor  or  in  moderate  circumstances, 
nor  is  all  vice  to  be  found  in  wealth,  but  the  fact  is 
that  out  of  poverty  and  moderate  financial  circum 
stances,  in  this  free  land  of  great  opportunity,  have 
come  most  of  our  successful  men.  There  is  a  feeling 
of  self-dependence,  and  industry,  so  necessary  to  suc 
cess  which  is  demanded  by  it.  Wealth  so  easily 
breeds  in  the  youth  indolence,  luxury,  excessive  pur 
suit  of  pleasure,  dissipation,  effeminacy  and  failure. 
This  is  not  always  the  case,  for  some  of  the  sons  of 
the  rich  overcome  their  handicaps  and  succeed  in  busi 
ness  or  in  some  learned  profession  and  they  deserve 
especial  credit  for  their  habits  of  study,  industry,  hon 
esty  and  virtue.  Nearly  all  of  the  great  fortunes  of 
America  have  been  founded  by  poor  boys  who  had 
to  work  their  way  up.  The  two  greatest  by  Rocke 
feller,  who  hoed  potatoes  in  the  field  at  fifty  cents  a 
day;  and  by  Carnegie,  the  poor  little  Scotch  messen 
ger  boy  who  worked  to  support  his  widowed  mother. 

Some  of  the  boys  in  comfortable  circumstances 
reached  the  Presidency,  but  a  number  of  very  poor 
ones  worked  their  way  up  to  it.  Lincoln  was  abjectly 
poor,  was  hard  up  for  money  till  after  he  got  into 
the  White  House.  A  gentleman  at  the  World's  Fair 
in  Chicago,  who  was  closely  related  to  Lincoln,  told 


52  THEODORE    ROOSEVELT 

me  that  one  day  when  he  had  made  out  the  slip  for 
the  day's  deposit  in  the  bank,  which  represented  a 
considerable  amount  of  money,  being  the  day  he  re 
ceived  his  salary,  the  President  said  to  him,  "This  is 
the  first  time  in  my  life  that  I  have  ever  been  ahead 
of  the  hounds  in  money  matters. ' '  Johnson,  his  Vice- 
president,  was  an  apprentice  to  a  tailor  down  in  Ten 
nessee.  Garfield  drove  a  mule  on  the  towpaths  of  a 
canal ;  McKinley  was  a  clerk  in  the  post  office ;  Cleve 
land  and  Wilson  were  the  poor  sons  of  Presbyterian 
preachers.  We  do  not  forget  that  Washington  at  the 
time  of  his  inaugural  was  said  to  be  the  richest  man 
in  the  United  States,  but  he  was  a  child  of  moderate 
financial  circumstance,  and,  as  a  boy,  had  to  work  for 
his  living;  that  he  inherited  Mt.  Vernon  from  a 
relative,  and  that  the  wealth  he  had  when  President 
was  that  which  came  to  him  by  the  widow  Custis,  the 
rich  woman  whom  he  married.  The  historical  fact  re 
mains  that  this  boy  from  20th  Street  was  the  only  son 
of  a  very  rich  man  that  ever  became  President  of  the 
United  States. 

The  home  of  wealth,  ordinarily  the  handicap  of 
greatness,  was  in  the  case  of  Theodore  Roosevelt,  one 
of  its  important  helps.  His  father  made  wealth  his 
servant  and  not  his  master.  His  father  and  mother 
did  not  consider  wealth  the  main  thing  in  life.  They 
took  great  pains  to  teach  their  boy  by  precept  and  ex 
ample  that  wealth  was  of  value  only  as  it  contributed 
to  physical  well-being,  mental  development  and  moral 
and  religious  growth.  They  taught  their  children  that 
truth,  honor  and  virtue  were  the  real  riches  in  life. 

It  is  more  than  likely  that  Theodore  Roosevelt  owed 
his  elevation  to  the  presidency  to  the  fact  that  his 
father  was  rich,  and  that  he  laid  away  -a  portion  of 
his  wealth  so  that  his  son  might  devote  his  time  en- 


HIS    BIRTHPLACE    AND    BOYHOOD      53 

tirely  to  the  public  good  without  any  care  on  his 
part  about  temporal  support.  In  fact,  Colonel 
Roosevelt,  time  and  again  to  those  of  us  closest  to 
him,  claimed  that  much  of  his  success  in  life  grew  out 
of  the  fact  that  his  father  made  it  possible  for  him 
to  give  his  life  up  to  the  service  of  the  state  without 
having  first  to  go  through  the  burden  of  making  a 
living  for  his  family.  In  these  times,  so  many  men  of 
wealth  swallow  their  breakfast  and  hurry  away  to 
business.  They  burden  themselves  down  with  it  all 
day,  and  return  home  at  night  after  the  children  have 
gone  to  bed,  or  maybe  after  a  meeting  at  the  club. 
They  really  need  to  be  introduced  to  their  families. 
Theodore  Roosevelt's  father  never  thought  of  going 
down  to  business  till  he  had  gathered  about  him  his 
wife  and  children  at  family  prayers.  He  spent  all 
the  time  possible  at  home  and  counted  his  home  as 
the  principal  thing.  Though  he  did  not  neglect  his 
business,  he  considered  the  dear  children  that  God 
had  given  him  more  precious  than  any  earthly  for 
tune. 

The  brightest  hope  of  the  republic  is  in  the  fact  that 
the  principles  that  were  incarnated  in  the  old  home  of 
Theodore  Roosevelt  are  those  that  characterize  the 
average  home  among  the  rich  and  poor  in  this  coun 
try  to-day — the  principles  of  conjugal  fidelity,  filial 
obedience,  integrity,  industry,  education  and  religion. 

Theodore  never  went  to  school  except  a  few  months 
when  he  attended  a  special  school  near  his  home. 
While  at  this  school  an  incident  occurred  which  was 
thus  told  to  one  of  the  editors  of  The  Christian 
Herald: 

Some  fifty  years  ago,  one  very  cold  morning,  a  half-dozen 
or  more  boys  were  gathered  closely  around  an  old  stove 
in  the  MacMillan  School  in  New  York  City.  One  of  those 


54  THEODORE    ROOSEVELT 

boys  had  poor  health  and  especially  weak  eyes.  An  old 
gentleman  always  brought  this  boy  to  school.  It  was 
noticeable  that  the  boy  was  always  present  and  never 
failed  to  know  his  lessons. 

While  shivering  around  the  old  stove  that  morning,  an 
other  boy,  Fred  McDaniel,  a  tall,  awkward  and  unpurpose- 
ful-looking  boy,  came  down  the  aisle,  threw  his  skates  on 
the  floor  and  his  books  upon  his  desk,  walked  over  to  the 
old  stove  and  said:  "Ted,  you're  a  fool!"  Ted  looked  up 
quickly  and  said  impulsively:  "What  do  you  mean?"  "Oh, 
I  don't  mean  what  you  think  I  mean,"  said  Fred.  "I  mean 
that  you're  not  able  to  come  to  school.  Your  eyes  are  weak, 
and  you'll  put  them  out  and  be  blind.  Your  father  is  rich 
and  you  don't  have  to  go  to  school.  My  father  is  rich  and 
I  expect  to  make  the  teacher  expel  me.  I  was  expelled 
from  school  in  Albany,  and  they'll  do  it  here.  I'm  simply 
not  going  to  school."  By  this  time  Ted  had  risen  to  his  feet. 

"I  may  put  my  eyes  out,"  he  said.  "I  am  going  to  be 
educated — I  am  going  to  be  educated  !'* 

Within  three  weeks,  Fred  succeeded  in  carrying  out  his 
determination,  getting  himself  expelled  from  school.  An 
other  boy,  Devolt,  was  present  that  morning.  Devolt  says : 
"Many  years  later  I  went  to  Albany,  where  Fred  and  I 
were  born,  to  visit  my  parents.  As  I  entered  the  depot,  the 
wind  was  piercing,  the  snow  was  falling  fast.  I  was  at 
tracted  by  the  sight  of  a  large  man  wearing  coarse  and 
untidy  clothes.  His  face  was  haggard,  his  hair  was  streaked 
with  gray,  across  his  shoulder  was  a  large  strap  that  held 
a  heavy  bundle  of  daily  papers.  "Have  a  paper,  sir?"  I 
recognized  the  voice,  and  as  I  turned  he  said  to  me:  "De- 
volt,  is  that  you?"  "Yes,  Fred,  old  fellow,  I'm  so  glad  to 
see  you.*' 

After  talking  a  few  moments,  the  two  old  schoolmates 
stepped  into  a  nearby  cafe  to  have  supper.  Having  ordered 
their  supper,  Devolt  said :  "Fred,  do  you  remember " 

"Wait,  Devolt,  I  know  what  you're  going  to  say.  You  are 
going  to  tell  me  about  the  morning  I  told  Ted  he  was  a  fool. 
Yes,  Devolt,  I  remember  it  all,  and  it's  the  saddest  memory 
of  my  life.  For  now  he's  our  President,  and  I — I  will  sleep 
in  a  garret  to-night." 

When  Theodore  was  sixteen  years  of  age,  his  father 
moved  into  the  more  fashionable  district  from  the  old 


HIS   BIRTHPLACE    AND    BOYHOOD      55 

house  on  20th  Street  to  6  West  57th  Street.  Theodore 
was  now  feeling  his  wings  as  it  were,  and  was  getting 
ready  to  fly  out  of  the  nest.  One  of  the  first  things 
he  did  was  to  take  a  bold  public  stand,  joining  the 
Christian  church  as  a  member  of  the  St.  Nicholas 
Reformed  Church.  This  selection  of  the  path  of  vir 
tue  and  piety  on  the  threshold  of  life  has  its  parallel 
in  the  Choice  of  Heracles  recorded  by  Xenophon  in 
his  " Memorabilia  of  Socrates/'  One  of  the  most 
brilliant  and  powerful  of  the  young  men  of  Greece 
was  hesitating  as  to  what  path  into  life  he  should  en 
ter.  While  doing  so,  he  repaired  to  a  solitude  for 
meditation.  While  there,  two  maidens  approached 
him. 

One  of  them  possessed  physical  charms,  but  was 
aided  by  art  so  that  she  seemed  fairer  and  rosier  than 
she  really  was;  she  was  elegantly  clad,  and  greatly 
admired  herself.  She  told  the  young  man  that  if  he 
would  follow  her  path  she  would  lead  him  to  happi 
ness,  furnish  him  food  and  drink,  and  pleasure,  and 
luxury,  and  that  she  would  never  require  him  to  toil  a 
day  either  with  body  or  mind.  The  young  man  asked 
her  what  was  her  name.  She  replied,  *  *  Those  who  love 
me  call  me  Happiness,  those  who  hate  me  call  me 
Vice.'1 

The  other  maiden,  whose  name  was  Virtue,  ap 
proached  the  young  man  and  made  her  plea.  Soc 
rates  thus  describes  her  and  tells  what  she  said  to 
him:  "She  was  fair  to  look  upon,  frank  and  free  by 
gift  of  nature.  Her  limbs  adorned  with  purity  and 
her  eyes  with  bashfulness,  sobriety  set  the  rhythm 
of  her  gait,  and  she  was  clad  in  white  apparel."  And 
she  said,  "Heracles,  I,  too,  am  come  to  you,  seeing 
that  your  parents  are  well  known  to  me,  and  in  your 
nurture  I  have  gauged  your  nature ;  wherefore  I  en- 


56  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

tertain  good  hope  that  if  you  choose  the  path  which 
leads  to  me,  you  shall  greatly  bestir  yourself  to  be 
the  doer  of  many  a  doughty  deed  of  noble  enterprise ; 
and  that  I,  too,  shall  be  held  in  even  higher  honor 
for  your  sake,  lit  with  the  luster  shed  by  valorous 
deeds.  I  will  not  cheat  you  with  preludings  of  pleas 
ure,  but  I  will  relate  you  the  things  that  are  accord 
ing  to  the  ordinances  of  God  in  very  truth.  Know 
then  that  among  things  that  are  lovely  and  of  good 
report,  not  one  have  the  gods  bestowed  upon  mortal 
man  apart  from  toil  and  pains.  "Would  you  obtain  the 
favor  of  the  gods,  then  must  you  pay  these  same  gods 
service.  Would  you  be  loved  by  your  friends,  you 
must  benefit  these  friends.  Do  you  desire  to  be  hon 
ored  by  the  state,  you  must  give  the  state  your  aid. 
Do  you  claim  admiration  for  your  virtue  from  all  Hel 
las,  you  must  strive  to  do  some  good  to  Hellas.  Do  you 
wish  earth  to  yield  her  fruits  to  you  abundantly,  to 
earth  you  must  pay  your  court;  Do  you  seek  to  amass 
riches  from  our  flocks  and  herds,  on  them  must  you 
bestow  your  labor.  Or  is  it  your  ambition  to  be  potent 
as  a  warrior,  able  to  save  your  friends  and  to  subdue 
your  foes,  then  must  you  learn  the  arts  of  war  from 
those  who  have  the  knowledge,  and  practise  their  ap 
plication  in  the  field  when  learned.  Or  would  you 
e'en  be  powerful  of  limb  and  body,  then  must  you 
habituate  limbs  and  body  to  obey  the  mind,  and  exer 
cise  yourself  with  toil  and  work. ' '  The  maiden  Virtue 
seems  a  veritable  prophetess  foretelling  the  destiny  of 
the  hero,  Theodore  Roosevelt. 

In  entering  life  he  came  to  two  roads,  a  broad  one 
leading  to  destruction  and  a  narrow  one  leading  to 
heaven.  He  deliberately  took  God  as  his  guide  and 
Christ  as  his  example,  and  at  the  age  of  sixteen  en 
tered  the  Army  of  the  King  and  battled  for  the  cause 
of  righteousness  till  the  day  of- his  death. 


AT  HAEVAED 


CHAPTER   III 
AT    HARVARD 

THE  family  at  home  had  done  its  part  faithfully 
in  the  preliminary  education  of  Theodore,  and 
the  time  had  come  for  a  new  factor  to  enter  into 
his  mental  and  moral  life,  that  of  a  tutor  to  prepare 
him  for  college.  A  brilliant  young  Harvard  graduate, 
Mr.  Arthur  H.  Cutler,  who  had  tried  the  woolen  busi 
ness  in  New  York  and  had  tired  of  it,  concluded  he 
would  undertake  the  task  of  preparing  boys  and 
young  men  for  college.  He  always  said  that  fortune 
came  his  way  when  he  was  asked  just  then  to  tutor 
the  Roosevelt  boys.  Theodore 's  father  had  just  moved 
uptown  to  No.  6  West  57th  Street,  and  young  Cutler 
came  up  to  that  home  from  9  to  12  every  school  day 
for  three  years  to  fit  the  Roosevelt  boys  for  college. 
There  were  three  of  them — Theodore  and  his  brother, 
Elliott,  and  his  cousin,  J.  West  Roosevelt.  After  three 
years  of  this  special  work  of  tuition,  Mr.  Cutler  con 
cluded  that  he  would  make  the  Roosevelt  boys  and  the 
few  others  he  had  been  able  to  handle  himself  the 
basis  of  a  boys'  preparatory  school.  Theodore  Roose 
velt  was  claimed  as  the  first  graduate,  and  the  late 
Elliott  Roosevelt  and  J.  West  Roosevelt  graduated  in 
1877. 

59 


60  THEODORE    ROOSEVELT 

It  would  have  been  thought  that  Theodore's  father, 
having  been  so  strict  a  member  of  the  Dutch  Re 
formed  Church,  would  have  sent  his  son  to  Rut 
gers  or  to  Princeton,  but  young  Cutler's  recommenda 
tion  of  Harvard  and  his  splendid  educational  equip 
ment  influenced  the  father  to  send  the  boy  to  Harvard 
in  the  autumn  of  1876.  Theodore's  respect  for  his  tu 
tor  the  first  year  was  great ;  it  increased  the  next  year 
and  the  next,  and  the  two  were  lifelong  friends.  Col 
onel  Roosevelt  never  ceased  to  recognize  the  tremen 
dous  influence  of  this  young  teacher  on  his  education, 
character  and  destiny.  Dr.  Cutler's  school,  which  he 
founded  on  the  Roosevelt  boys,  became  one  of  the  fin 
est  institutions  of  its  kind  in  America,  and  numbered 
among  its  graduates  the  sons  of  some  of  the  most  in 
fluential  families  in  New  York  City  and  elsewhere, 
among  them:  William  Havemeyer,  J.  Pierpont  Mor 
gan,  Prof.  T.  C.  Janeway,  the  late  doctor ;  John  Har- 
sen  Rhoades,  Harry  Payne  Whitney,  Hon.  Frank  L. 
Polk,  John  D.  Rockefeller,  Jr.,  and  many  others.  For 
forty  years  Professor  Cutler  through  his  school  hon 
ored  his  profession  and  blessed  the  young  manhood  of 
America  as  few  have  done. 

One  of  the  masters,  Prof.  Herbert  S.  Boyd,  told  me 
this  incident,  illustrating  not  only  the  intimacy  of 
Dr.  Cutler  with  Colonel  Roosevelt,  but  also  Mr.  Roose 
velt's  wide  knowledge  of  books.  Professor  Boyd  said: 
' '  Dr.  Cutler  was  always  a  most  welcome  guest  at  Saga 
more  Hill  and  at  the  White  House.  In  his  visits  to 
the  White  House  the  old  times  were  talked  over  and 
also  matters  of  public  interest.  But  the  President  al 
ways  called  up  the  question  of  the  new  books  that  had 
been  written  and  their  merits  were  discussed.  Almost 
the  first  questions  which  the  President  would  put  to 
his  old  tutor  was, '  What  have  you  been  reading  ? '  And 


AT  HARVARD  61 

Dr.  Cutler  would  tell  him  the  books  which  he  had 
read,  and  it  seemed  that  Mr.  Roosevelt  had  already 
read  them.  Dr.  Cutler  decided  to  get  ahead  of  him, 
so  he  went  to  a  book  store  and  asked  for  the  latest 
publication  (a  book  in  two  volumes).  Dr.  Cutler  took 
the  first  volume  with  him  on  the  train  to  Washington 
and  had  the  other  sent  to  his  own  home  in  the  city. 
Try  as  he  might  it  was  of  such  heavy  reading  that  be 
tween  New  York  and  Washington  he  could  complete 
only  about  200  pages.  When  Roosevelt  asked  him 
what  he  had  been  reading,  he  told  him  and  expected 
to  have  the  advantage  of  Mr.  Roosevelt.  Mr.  Roose 
velt  asked  him  how  he  liked  the  book  and  Dr.  Cutler 
attempted  to  discuss  what 'he  had  read,  but  the  Presi 
dent  said,  'You  know  nothing  about  the  book.  Wait 
till  you  get  to  page  455  of  volume  two ;  that  is  where 
the  work  shines. '  ' ' 

Theodore  Roosevelt,  fully  prepared  by  Professor 
Cutler,  entered  Harvard  in  1876,  a  slim  young  man 
of  eighteen,  not  weighing  over  one  hundred  and  thirty 
pounds  and  wearing  a  pair  of  side  whiskers.  He  had 
not  entirely  recovered  from  his  old  enemy  the  asthma, 
and  wheezed  and  suffered  with  it  considerably  through 
his  college  course,  but  he  continued  his  physical  exer 
cise,  walking,  horse-back  riding,  boxing  and  other  gym 
nastic  exercises  and  retained  his  strength  and  gained 
muscle  and  general  health  despite  his  strenuous  course. 
He  was  not  counted  a  great  student,  did  not  stand 
very  high  in  his  class  and  did  not  win  many  honors. 
He  never  worked  for  marks.  He  was  so  busy  in  the 
investigation  of  the  realm  of  science  that  he  did  not 
set  himself  to  grind  on  the  studies  that  did  not  appeal 
to  him.  He  had  very  respectable  marks,  however ;  he 
was  a  member  of  the  Phi  Beta  Kappa  Society,  which 
is  supposed  to  include  the  best  intellects  of  the  class, 


62  THEODORE   KOOSEVELT 

and  was  a  member  of  the  Alpha  Delta  Phi  College  So 
ciety,  which  indicated  good  intellectual  rank. 

While  he  was  a  member  of  the  sophomore  class  his 
name  was  presented  as  one  of  the  twelve  to  be  selected 
from  his  class  for  the  editorial  staff  of  the  Harvard 
Advocate,  the  college  organ ;  and  a  committee  was  ap 
pointed  to  examine  into  his  qualifications  for  that  po 
sition  and  the  chairman  of  that  committee  reported 
to  the  editors:  "I  cannot  see  that  he  is  the  kind  of 
man  we  want,  although  I  find  that  he  is  a  thoroughly 
good  fellow  and  much  liked  by  his  classmates.  I  do  not 
believe  that  he  has  much  literary  interest.  He  spends 
his  spare  time  chipping  off  pieces  of  rock  and  exam 
ining  strata,  catching  butterflies  and  bugs,  and  would, 
I  think,  be  better  suited  for  a  scientific  society  than 
for  us."  The  editors  rejected  him.  He  was,  however, 
elected,  some  time  after,  to  a  position  on  the  editorial 
staff  of  the  Advocate,  but  did  not  do  any  conspicuous 
work. 

He  was  a  game  sport  but  was  not  large  enough  to 
figure  in  football  or  rowing  or  most  strenuous  games. 
He  was  physically  disqualified  from  being  at  the  front 
or  even  being  included  in  the  coveted  team.  He  did 
some  very  clever  light-weight  boxing.  There  is  a  story 
that  in  one  of  these  pugilistic  encounters,  his  adver 
sary  struck  him  a  blow  on  the  nose,  starting  the  red 
current,  after  time  had  been  called.  The  spectators 
cried,  " Shame,"  and  hissed  him.  He  raised  his  hand 
demanding  silence  and  called  out  that  the  man  did  not 
intend  to  give  him  a  foul  hit,  that  he  had  not  heard 
the  time  called.  He  shook  the  man's  hand  and  taking 
his  place  again  gave  his  antagonist  a  left  stroke  on 
the  chin  that  knocked  him  out  for  the  round.  This 
illustrates  in  the  young  man  the  same  sense  of  fair 
play  which  he  practiced  himself  and  asked  in  others. 


AT  HARVARD  63 

The  muscles  of  his  legs  were  not  as  hard  as  he  desired 
them  to  be  and  so  he  set  himself  to  jumping  a  rope 
like  a  girl.  He  did  this  with  so  much  enthusiasm 
that  hundreds  of  boys  in  all  the  classes  got  ropes  and 
started  jumping. 

There  was  something  about  the  young  student  that 
was  spectacular,  that  made  people  look  at  him  and  see 
what  he  was  about.  They  wanted  to  see  him  when  he 
boxed  and  they  watched  him  jump  the  rope.  They 
looked  at  the  red  and  blue  athletic  stockings  which 
he  wore,  and  because  the  boys  did  make  fun  and  de 
mand  that  he  take  them  off,  he  the  more  persistently 
wore  them.  The  whole  college  knew  about  the  stuffed 
birds  and  game  he  had  killed,  which  decorated  his 
apartment.  They  followed  him  with  their  eye  when 
on  his  favorite  horse  he  dashed  through  the  streets 
of  Cambridge  and  along  the  country  roads.  He  was  in 
the  search  of  health  as  well  as  in  the  enjoyment  of 
sport  in  his  boxing.  He  was  in  search  of  health  and 
for  scientific  knowledge  in  his  trips  on  horseback  and 
on  foot.  Yet  whatever  he  did,  and  wherever  he  went, 
he  was  the  object  of  attention  and  of  deep  interest. 
This  was  one  of  his  most  marked  characteristics  which 
accompanied  him  throughout  his  life. 

He  was  exceedingly  fond  of  college  politics  and  was 
successful  at  the  game,  and  had  there  an  excellent 
start  in  the  great  lifework  which  he  followed.  He 
was  also  interested  in  the  politics  of  the  nation.  In 
a  heated  campaign,  the  members  of  his  class  who  were 
Republicans  went  over  in  a  body  to  Boston  to  join  in 
a  parade.  They  carried  torchlights  and  were  enthusi 
astic  as  all  college  boys  are.  As  they  passed  a  certain 
house,  a  man  of  opposite  political  opinion,  sitting  in 
the  second-story  window  laughed  and  jeered  at  the 
boys,  and  he  backed  up  his  opposition  by  throwing  a 


64  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

raw  potato  at  the  men  in  the  line.  Theodore  Roose 
velt  rushed  out  of  the  line,  laid  down  his  torch,  shook 
his  fist  at  the  man  in  the  window  and  dared  him  to 
come  down  on  the  pavement  and  settle  the  matter  on 
the  spot.  It  is  said  that  the  man  did  not  come  down, 
that  the  taunts  ceased  and  that  no  more  potatoes  were 
wasted.  This  indignation  at  an  insult,  this  challenge 
to  settle  wrong-doing  in  a  summary  manner,  though 
tempered  by  tact  and  experience,  as  the  years  passed, 
was  one  of  the  things  that  characterized  him  always 
and  was  an  element  of  his  greatness. 

Perhaps  the  strongest  mark  that  Harvard  left  on 
him  was  the  social  one.  The  fashionable  set  of  Har 
vard  and  Boston  was  a  complete  change  from  his  al 
most  hermit  life  at  his  old  home  on  20th  Street.  But 
his  home  training  had  prepared  him  well  for  the 
social  life  of  Harvard  in  preparation  for  the  great 
wide  world  which  was  to  receive  him  and  of  which 
he  was  to  form  so  important  a  part.  This  son  of 
wealth  and  aristocracy  was  immediately  given  a  place 
in  the  influential  social  circles  at  Harvard  and  in 
Boston.  He  rode  and  drove  a  fast  horse;  he  had  a 
fancy  high  trap ;  he  knew  the  rules  of  good  breeding ; 
he  had  to  dress  up  for  dinner  at  home  from  the  time 
he  was  a  boy,  and  knew  exactly  what  to  do  in  this 
elegant,  influential  social  circle.  It  did  not  spoil  him, 
as  it  does  many  young  men,  but  aided  largely  in  mak 
ing  him,  in  giving  him  social  contact  with  the  best 
people,  a  broader  vision  of  life  and  a  new  set  of  en 
joyments.  The  social  life  he  made  his  servant  and  not 
his  master,  for  he  kept  up  his  hard  reading,  his  scien 
tific  investigation  and  his  literary  work  besides.  Some 
of  fhese  sons  of  splendid  families  who  were  in  Har 
vard  at  the  same  time  he  was,  and  with  whom  he  had 
such  intimate  social  intercourse,  became  his  friends  for 


AT  HARVARD  65 

life.  He  mentioned  the  names  of  some  of  them  to  me 
as  having  been  not  only  as  dear  to  him  as  though  they 
had  been  his  own  kin  but  also  among  the  strongest 
instruments  in  his  political  promotion. 

It  seems  like  a  paradox  that  this  smart,  rich  man's 
son,  with  his  fashionable  equipment,  his  sporting 
habits,  his  posing  as  a  prize-fighter  and  a  star 
dancer,  should  be  found  teaching  a  Sunday  school 
class,  and  a  mission  class  at  that.  But  the  old  house 
on  20th  Street'  had  gotten  in  its  work  on  him  so  thor 
oughly  that  it  was  the  perfectly  natural  thing  for  him 
to  be  regular  in  his  attendance  upon  church,  devoted 
in  his  religious  habits  and  engaged  particularly  in 
saving  the  souls  of  poor  children.  He  was  all  through 
his  life  a  paradox.  The  paradox  is  only  a  seeming 
contradiction  and  not  a  real  one,  so  that  the  gay, 
young,  rich  sport  at  Harvard  and  the  teacher  in  the 
mission  school  were  not  opposite  at  all,  but  the  natural 
life  of  the  one  person.  We  doubt  whether  in  all  Amer 
ican  life  there  ever  appeared  such  a  paradox  as  he. 
From  the  beginning  to  the  end,  his  life  was  full  of 
apparent  contradictions,  which  were  not  so  at  all,  but 
in  harmony  with  the  same  character,  spectacular  as 
ever. 

There  is  this  incident  connected  with  young 
Roosevelt's  teaching  of  the  mission  class.  He  had 
quite  a  scene  in  the  school.  It  seems  that  a  boy  named 
Joe  came  into  the  class  one  Sunday  with  a  black  eye. 
The  teacher  naturally  asked  him  how  he  got  it.  He 
told  him  that  a  boy  had  pinched  his  sister  in  Sunday 
school  and  that  he  had  given  the  boy  a  good  licking, 
but  had  himself  got  the  black  eye  in  the  encounter. 
The  teacher  said,  "You  did  exactly  right.  Here's  a 
dollar  I  want  you  to  take,  as  a  mark  of  my  apprecia 
tion  of  your  courage  in  defending  your  sister."  The 


66  THEODORE    ROOSEVELT 

mission  class  belonged  to  a  high  Episcopal  church  and 
the  Sunday  school  authorities  were  rather  shocked  by 
this  militant  teacher  of  theirs.  They  were  afraid 
that  the  doctrine  he  preached  was  rather  too  stren 
uous  ;  besides,  the  young  Harvard  student  got  tangled 
in  the  ritual  service  at  times  and,  altogether,  both  the 
officers  and  the  young  teacher  thought  it  would  be  just 
as  well  for  him  to  offer  his  services  to  another  Sunday 
school.  So  he  took  up  a  class  in  a  Congregational 
mission  Sunday  school  and  remained  an  intensely  pop 
ular  and  efficient  teacher  till  the  day  of  his  gradua 
tion. 

Mr.  Roosevelt  was  very  fond  of  his  Alma  Mater. 
President  Roosevelt  made  an  address  at  a  Commence 
ment  dinner  at  Cambridge,  June  25th,  1902.  He  said, 
"It  was  my  great  good  fortune  five  years  ago  to  serve 
under  your  President,  the' then  Secretary  of  the  Navy, 
ex-Governor  Long,  and  by  a  strange  turn  of  the  wheel 
of  fate  he  served  in  my  Cabinet  as  long  as  he  would 
consent  to  serve,  and  then  I  had  to  replace  him  by  an 
other  Harvard  man !  I  have  been  fortunate  in  being 
associated  with  Senator  Hoar,  and  I  should  indeed 
think  ill  of  myself  if  I  had  not  learned  something  from 
association  with  a  man  who  possesses  that  fine  and 
noble  belief  in  mankind,  the  lack  of  which  forbids 
healthy  effort  to  do  good  in  a  democracy  like  ours.  I 
have  another  fellow  Harvard  man  to  speak  of  to-day, 
and  it  is  necessary  to  paraphrase  an  old  saying  in 
order  to  state  the  bald  truth,  that  it  is  indeed  a  liberal 
education  in  high-minded  statesmanship  to  sit  at  the 
same  council  table  with  John  Hay. ' ' 

Mr.  Roosevelt's  devotion  to  Harvard  is  illustrated 
by  this  story.  It  seems  that  some  United  States  Sen 
ator  had  called  on  the  President  on  an  important  mat 
ter.  He  waited  for  some  time  for  his  turn  and  asked 


AT  HARVAKD  67 

the  doorkeeper  if  he  would  not  tell  Mr.  Roosevelt  that 
he  was  there  and  would  like  to  have  an  audience  with 
him,  which  had  been  made  by  appointment.  The  man 
came  back  with  the  report  that  he  would  see  him  pres 
ently.  There  was  another  wait  of  some  minutes  and 
the  Senator  rather  impatiently  sent  the  doorkeeper  in 
to  insist  that  immediate  attention  be  given  to  him. 
The  man  came  back  with  the  answer  that  the  Presi 
dent  said  he  was  so  busy  receiving  a  call  from  the 
Harvard  Baseball  Club  that  the  small  matter  of  sen 
atorial  business  would  have  to  wait  a  few  minutes. 
And  he  told  a  friend  afterward  that  people  ought  to 
have  better  sense  than  to  call  on  him  at  a  time  when 
the  Harvard  boys  were  making  a  visit. 

Much  as  he  loved  Harvard,  he  did  not  hesitate  while 
in  college,  and  after  he  left  it,  to  say  some  very  plain 
things  about  some  things  he  thought  could  be  im 
proved  upon. 

Theodore's  father  had  talked  to  him  so  much  about 
the  necessity  of  depending  upon  himself,  to  work  for 
a  living,  that  he  supposed  he  wanted  him  to  follow 
his  own  career  as  a  business  man  and  perhaps  in  con 
nection  with  his  father 's  firm  on  Maiden  Lane.  But 
the  appeal  of  God  through  nature  to  him  in  his  boy 
hood  still  sounded  in  his  ears  while  in  college  and  with 
compelling  force.  He  felt  deep  down  in  the  bottom 
of  his  heart  that  he  preferred  to  be  a  naturalist  and 
determined  that  he  would  be  such  if  his  father  should 
give  his  consent.  This  was  while  he  was  a  freshman 
at  Harvard  and  in  an  intimate  talk  with  his  father 
he  revealed  his  deep  desire  and  asked  his  father's 
consent  that  he  should  give  himself  up  to  natural 
science  and  prepare  himself  for  a  professorship  in 
some  university.  His  father  gave  his  consent  and  at 
the  same  time  told  him  that  he  would  leave  him  money 


68  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

enough  so  that  he  might  devote  his  life  without  any 
concern  about  a  living  to  the  work  of  a  naturalist. 
He  said  to  him'  that  the  money  he  would  leave  him 
would  not  support  him  in  extravagance,  but  would 
take  comfortable  care  of  him  and  told  him  that  if  he 
wanted  the  extras,  "the  butter  and  jam,"  as  he  called 
them,  he  would  have  to  get  them  out  of  his  salary 
or  profession.  He  was  greatly  delighted  when  his 
father  gave  his  consent  to  the  devotion  of  his  life  to 
science. 

About  a  year  from  that  time  his  father  died,  but  he 
continued  his  college  course  with  the  understanding 
that  he  would*  be  a  naturalist  and  a  professor  of  some 
department  of  science  in  a  university.  But  as  he 
drew  near  the  day  of  his  graduation,  he  became  mixed 
in  his  mind  as  to  the  wisdom  of  the  calling  he  had 
selected.  The  work  done  in  botany  and  in  zoology  at 
Harvard  and  most  other  universities  in  this  country 
was  done  most  of  it  indoors  under  the  microscope,  and 
his  free  nature  craved  the  out-of-door  investigation, 
the  field  work  of  the  science.  He  felt  that  he  would 
be  too  circumscribed  in  a  professor's  chair.  But  he 
did  not  know  what  to  do,  as  two  or  three  other  callings 
suggested*  themselves  to  him.  So  he  went  up  to  the 
silence  and  solitude  at  the  summit  of  the  Alps  to  talk 
with*  God  about  it.  And  the  God  who  spoke  to  Moses 
on  the  Mount  spoke  to  him.  In  the  execution  of  his 
Divine  commission  he  came  down  from  the  mountain 
and  passed  through  the  doorway  of  a  law  office  out 
into  the  public  life  to  which  he  felt  he  had  been  called, 
and  where  he  believed  he  would  best  develop  himself, 
serve  his  f  ellowmen  and  honor  his  God. 


MEMBER  OF  STATE  ASSEMBLY 


CHAPTER   IV 
MEMBER  OF  STATE  ASSEMBLY 

THE  year  after  Roosevelt's  graduation  at  Har 
vard  was  spent  in  travel  and  study.  During 
that  period  he  did  some  tall  mountain-climbing 
and  was  admitted  to  the  famous  Alpine  Club  of  Lon 
don,  his  sponsors  being  Mr.  Bryce  and  Mr.  Buxton, 
distinguished  men  who  became  his  lifelong  friends. 
In  the  fall  of  1881  he  entered  the  law  school  of  Co 
lumbia  College  and  read  law  in  the  office  of  his  uncle, 
Robert  B.  Roosevelt.  His  uncle  was  a  prominent  Re 
publican  leader  with  high  moral  principles,  who  was 
chairman  of  the  Citizens'  Committee  of  Seventy,  dur 
ing  the  fight  against  Boss  Tweed  and  his  "ring."  He 
was  a  member  of  the  New  York  City  Board  of  Alder 
men,  was  President  of  the  New  York  International 
Association  for  the  Protection  of  Game  and  one  of  the 
founders  of  the  New  York  State  Fishery  Commission. 
He  was  United  States  Minister  to  the  Netherlands 
and  was  himself  an  author.  Young  Roosevelt,  in  this 
highly  charged,  political  atmosphere,  with  his  strong 
intention  to  enter  public  life,  soon  took  his  attention 
away  from  the  college  law  course  and  his  uncle's  of 
fice  and  entered  New  York  City  politics  at  the  bottom 

71 


72  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

of  the  ladder.  His  residence  was  in  the  21st  assembly 
district,  and  he  began  immediately  acquainting  him 
self  with  the  members  of  the  precinct  and  district 
committees  and  engaging  in  practical  work  at  the 
primaries. 

The  21st  assembly  district  contained  a  strip  along 
Fifth  Avenue,  including  some  of  the  richest  families 
in  the  city,  and  went  over  into  the  East  Side,  in 
cluding  a  larger  number  of  the  plainer  people  and 
those  who  were  under  the  domination  of  Tammany 
Hall.  Some  of  the  richest  and  most  intelligent  citi 
zens  in  the  Fifth  Avenue  neighborhood  felt  that  their 
district  had  been  under  bad  leadership  and  under 
poor  representation  at  Albany;  that  the  baser  ele 
ment  was  predominant.  The  ward  heelers  felt,  them 
selves,  that  in  order  to  obtain  money  for  the  cam 
paigns  and  the  votes  of  the  richer  element,  it  would 
be  better  to  run  a  highbrow  on  their  ticket  for  the 
assembly.  Young  Roosevelt,  then  about  twenty- 
three  years  of  age,  consented  to  be  a  candidate  for  the 
Legislature  if  nominated.  Jacob  Hess,  the  district 
boss,  was  not  friendly  to  the  proposition,  but  Joe  Mur 
ray,  a  rival  leader,  espoused  Roosevelt's  cause,  and 
he  was  nominated. 

To  launch  the  campaign,  a  dinner  was  given  at  Del- 
monico's.  Boys  from  the  East  Side  were  not  in  evi 
dence,  the  nabobs  were  out  in  force.  The  young  can 
didate  read  a  written  address,  which  occupied  a  full 
hour's  time,  in  an  emphatic  but  not  inspirational  man 
ner,  but  he  laid  down  rock-bottom  facts.  He  ar 
raigned  in  detail  the  evils  in  the  municipality,  State 
and  nation.  He  told  what  the  remedies  should  be.  He 
said  that  if  they  were  to  elect  him  he  would  do  his 
very  best  to  check,  in  the  city  and  State,  evils  that 
were  so  apparent.  Persons  who  were  there  said  that 


MEMBER    OF    STATE    ASSEMBLY        73 

in  every  essential  act  Roosevelt 's  public  life  from  that 
day  till  his  death  was  the  unfolding  of  the  principles 
of  justice,  truth,  right,  mercy,  love  and  a  courageous 
warfare  against  wrong,  which  he  laid  down  as  a  chart 
in  his  speech  that  night. 

Politics  in  New  York  have  always  been  corrupt 
enough,  but  they  were  singularly  so  when  young 
Roosevelt  entered  the  fight  for  the  Legislature.  Not 
only  the  conventions  of  Tammany  Hall,  but  of  the 
Republicans  as  well,  were  held  over  saloons,  and  the 
saloonkeepers,  as  a  rule,  were  the  political  bosses  and 
very  often  political  candidates.  Young  Roosevelt  was 
told  by  his  rich  neighbors  that  politics  were  so  rotten 
that  he  could  not  afford  to  spoil  himself  in  a  political 
canvass ;  that  the  Republican  leaders  were  saloonkeep 
ers,  street  car  drivers  and  the  like ;  and  his  reply  was, 
"If  you  men  of  education,  culture,  wealth  and  re 
ligious  professions  have  no  more  interest  in  your  own 
government  than  to  let  such  men  rule  you,  you  de 
serve  to  be  misruled  and  are  largely  responsible  be 
fore  God  and  man  for  the  corruption  of  the  city 
politics. ' ' 

The  leaders  took  the  young  candidate  into  the  saloon 
neighborhood  of  the  East  Side  to  confer  with  the  boys. 
Valentine  Young,  a  saloonkeeper,  said,  "Mr.  Roose 
velt,  if  you  are  elected,  we  liquor  dealers  will  expect 
you  to  do  fairly  by  us."  He  answered  promptly,  "If 
I  am  elected,  I  expect  to  deal  fairly  with  all  my  con 
stituents.'*  The  man  said,  "Our  license  is  too  high, 
and  we  expect  if  you  are  elected  that  you  will  reduce 
it  considerably."  He  said,  "My  friend,  your  license 
is  far  too  low,  and  if  I  am  elected  you  may  expect  me 
to  use  my  influence  in  raising  it."  Jake  Hess  and 
Joe  Murray  drew  him  one  side  and  told  him  he  had 
better  go  back  on  Fifth  Avenue  and  take  care  of  the 


74  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

rich  crowd  up  there.  He  did  stir  the  highbrows  in  the 
millionaire  district.  The  richest  men  in  the  city 
turned  out  and  canvassed  for  him;  his  sister,  Mrs. 
Douglas  Robinson,  folded  ballots  for  him;  her  hus 
band  paid  $2.00  for  a  table  on  which  were  placed  cam 
paign  literature  and  ballots.  Dean  Van  Amrige  of 
Columbia  headed  a  band  of  college  students  who 
worked  like  beavers  until  the  poles  were  closed. 
Young  Roosevelt  was  elected  and  took  his  seat  as  the 
youngest  member  of  the  Legislature,  as  he  was  later 
the  youngest  President  of  the  United  States. 

Elected  as  a  Republican,  he  was  a  member  of  the 
minority  in  the  Assembly  and  unknown  politically. 
His  first  speech,  however,  made  a  sensation.  His  op 
portunity  came  when  a  fellow  Assemblyman  made  a 
speech  in  which  he  dealt  with  many  historical  facts. 
Roosevelt 's  speech,  although  impromptu,  showed  such 
knowledge  of  these  facts  and  such  a  grasp  of  the  sub 
ject  that  he  was  widely  complimented  by  opponents 
and  supporters.  His  rise  in  rank  in  the  Assembly 
was  startlingly  rapid.  The  second  year  of  his  mem 
bership  he  was  the  Republican  candidate  for  Speaker. 
It  was  a  Democratic  house,  but  the  honor  was,  never 
theless,  a  great  one  for  a  young  man,  and  on  its  ac 
count  he  was  made  floor  leader.  In  his  third  year 
as  an  Assemblyman  he  was  put  at  the  head  of  the 
important  Committee  of  Cities,  having  proved  his 
thorough  knowledge  of  municipal  affairs. 

During  his  term  in  the  Legislature,  he  interested 
himself  in  tenement  house  reform.  His  father  had 
been  the  champion  of  the  poor  people  of  the  East 
Side,  especially  the  neglected  children  of  that  district. 
He  himself  knew  the  uncomfortable  and  unhealthy 
tenement  houses  that  existed  in  such  large  numbers. 
As  an  Assemblyman,  he  went  down  into  those  dis- 


MEMBER    OF    STATE    ASSEMBLY        75 

tricts  and  saw  what  was  necessary  and  introduced  a 
bill,  which  was  passed,  but  which  was  declared  by  the 
courts  to  be  unconstitutional.  He  had  the  privilege 
afterward,  however,  while  a  member  of  the  health 
board  and  police  commissioner  of  New  York,  to  effect 
many  of  the  reforms  which  he  had  proposed  while 
he  was  a  member  of  the  Assembly. 

As  the  chairman  of  the  important  committee  on 
cities  he  instituted  an  investigation  of  the  municipal 
administration  of  New  York,  which  was  called  the 
"Roosevelt  Committee."  In  that  investigation  one  of 
the  officers  on  the  witness  stand  could  not  remember 
whether  the  expenses  in  the  campaign  were  over  or 
under  fifty  thousand  dollars.  A  little  item  like  that 
had  entirely  escaped  his  memory.  Another  officer  ad 
mitted  that  he  made  legally  eighty  thousand  dollars  a 
year.  Assemblyman  Roosevelt  introduced  measures 
which  put  a  stop  to  all  of  these  excessively  high  sal 
aries  and  made  uncomfortable  the  use  of  such  slush 
funds  in  political  campaigns  by  either  party. 

One  of  the  great  sources  of  evil  in  New  York  City 
was  the  power  of  confirmation  the  Board  of  Alder 
men  had  over  the  Mayor's  appointments,  rendering  a 
good  Mayor  who  wanted  to  do  right,  powerless  in  the 
hands  of  a  Tammany  Board  of  Aldermen,  which 
seemed  to  continue  from  year  to  year.  Assemblyman 
Roosevelt  secured  the  passage  of  a  bill  that  stopped 
that  source  of  evil. 

Young  Roosevelt  was  re-elected  to  the  Legislature 
of  1883  and  re-elected  again  to  that  of  1884.  During 
these  three  years  he  was  consistent  with  himself,  and 
with  the  Roosevelt  of  history,  in  fighting  fearlessly 
every  wrong,  at  whatever  cost,  and  in  maintaining 
everything  he  considered  to  be  right. 

Perhaps  the  most  spectacular  event  during  his  three 


76  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

years  in  the  Legislature  was  his  fight  for  the  impeach 
ment  of  a  prominent  judge.  One  of  the  corrupt  com 
binations  which  had  largely  controlled  the  Legisla 
ture  under  both  parties,  backed  an  attempt  of  one  of 
the  elevated  railroads  to  rob  the  State  through  vile 
legislation.  They  were  aided  not  only  by  certain  mem 
bers  of  the  Legislature,  but  by  Republican  and  Demo 
cratic  leaders.  And  the  judiciary  was  also  involved 
in  the  charges  of  corruption.  A  prosecuting  attorney 
and  a  corrupt  Supreme  Court  judge  were  under  deep 
suspicion.  Young  Roosevelt,  feeling  sure  that  the 
judge  was  in  criminal  complicity  with  the  thieves, 
fought  him  desperately  and  demanded  his  impeach 
ment.  His  charges  were  made  with  a  boldness  that 
was  almost  startling.  The  members  gave  the  closest 
attention  and  he  went  through  without  interruption. 
"We  have  a  right, "  cried  Roosevelt,  in  closing,  "to 
demand  that  our  judiciary  shall  be  kept  beyond  re 
proach,  and  we  have  a  right  to  demand  that,  if  we 
find  men  acting  so  that  there  is  not  only  a  suspicion, 
but  almost  a  certainty,  that  they  have  had  dealings 
with  men  whose  interests  were  in  conflict  with  those 
of  the  public,  they  should  be  at  least  required  to  prove 
that  the  charges  are  untrue.  ' ' 

Meanwhile,  "mysterious"  influences  were  at  work 
to  cover  up  the  scandal.  A  messenger  from  John 
Kelly,  a  boss  of  Tammany  Hall,  hurried  to  Albany. 
Agents  "from  wealthy  stock  gamblers"  whom  Roose 
velt  had  openly  denounced  as  "swindlers"  appeared 
in  the  lobby  of  the  Capitol.  Roosevelt  himself  was 
urged,  not  only  by  his  enemies,  but  by  his  friends, 
not  to  press  the  hopeless  contest.  They  pointed  out  to 
him  that,  with  "the  interests"  against  him,  he  could 
never  in  the  world  secure  the  passage  of  the  resolu- 


MEMBER    OF    STATE    ASSEMBLY        77 

tion.  They  made  clear  to  him  that  he  was  ruining  his 
promising  career. 

He  had  friends,  moreover,  who  played  the  game  of 
his  enemies.  There  was  a  prominent  lawyer,  for  in 
stance,  an  old  family  friend,  who  took  him  out  to 
lunch  one  day.  "You've  done  well  in  the  Legisla 
ture,  Theodore,"  he  remarked.  "It's  a  good  thing  to 
make  a  'reform  play.'  It  attracts  attention.  You've 
shown  that  you  possess  ability  of  the  sort  that  will 
make  you  useful  in  a  large  law  office  or  business.  But 
if  I  were  you  I  don't  think  I'd  overplay  my  hand." 
"Eh?"  interrupted  Roosevelt.  "You've  gone  far 
enough,"  the  lawyer  went  on  calmly.  "Now  it's  time 
for  you  to  leave  politics  and  identify  yourself  with  the 
right  kind  of  people."  "The  right  kind—"  "The 
people  who  control  others  and  in  the  long  run  always 
will  control  others  and  get  the  only  rewards  that  are 
worth  having. "  "  You  mean  to  say, ' '  cried  Roosevelt 
hotly,  "that  you  want  me  to  give  in  to  the  'ring'?" 

The  old  man  answered  impatiently :  ' '  You  're  talking 
like  a  newspaper.  You're  entirely  mistaken  if  you 
think  there  is  a  'ring',  made  up  of  a  few  corrupt 
politicians,  who  control  the  government.  Those  men 
have  only  limited  power.  The  actual  power  is  in  the 
hands  of  a  certain  inner  circle  of  big  business  men. 
The  big  politicians,  lawyers,  judges,  are  in  alliance 
with  them  and,  in  a  sense,  dependent  on  them.  No 
young  man  can  succeed  in  law,  business  or  politics 
who  hasn't  the  backing  of  those  forces.  That  is  as  it 
should  be.  For  it  is  merely  the  recognition  that  busi 
ness  is  supremely  important  and  that  everything  else 
must  bow  to  it." 

Theodore  Roosevelt  had  never  before  come  in  con 
tact  with  that  point  of  view,  and  it  gave  him  a  shock. 
It  threw  a  vivid  light  backward  on  the  impeachment 


78  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

investigation.  He  understood  now  how,  with  all  the 
evidence  against  the  venal  judge  and  the  people  of 
the  State  of  New  York  calling  for  his  impeachment, 
he  had  nevertheless  escaped. 

Theodore  did  not  take  his  friend's  advice.  "I  think 
I'll  try  to  go  back  to  the  Legislature, ' '  he  said.  And 
he  did. 

They  miscounted  the  vote  and  practiced  every  trick 
and  fraud  possible  and  defeated  the  young  reformer 
in  his  impeachment  of  the  judge,  but  his  brave  fight 
for  honesty,  a  pure  judiciary  and  clean  politics  in  that 
case  attracted  the  attention  of  the  whole  nation, 
stirred  its  moral  conscience  to  the  depths  and  made 
him,  on  the  very  threshold  of  his  public  life,  a  nation 
wide  character.  No  Assemblyman  in  America,  during 
his  one  term,  ever  made  so  profound  an  impression 
upon  the  public  thought  or  conscience  of  the  country. 

He  had  such  influence  in  the  State  Legislature, 
in  the  city  and  State  politics  that  it  would  be  surpris 
ing  if  his  success  and  flatterers  had  not  turned  his 
head.  He  says  plainly  that  they  did,  and  that  during 
his  experience  as  an  Assemblyman  he  learned  one  of 
the  greatest  lessons  of  his  public  life  and  that  is, 
that  a  man  must  not  only  be  right,  maintain  the  right, 
and  fight  for  the  right,  but  that  he  must  have  enough 
other  people  to  think  and  feel  as  he  does  on  essentials 
to  act  with  him  politically.  He  expresses  this  political 
self-conceit  and  his  cure  of  it  in  the  following  words  : 

"I  suppose,"  he  said,  "that  my  head  was  swelled. 
It  would  not  be  strange  if  it  was.  I  stood  out  for  my 
own  opinion,  alone.  I  took  the  best  mugwump  stand : 
my  own  consciences,  my  own  judgment,  were  to  decide 
in  all  things.  I  would  listen  to  no  arguments,  no  ad 
vice.  I  took  the  isolated  peak  on  every  issue,  and 
my  people  left  me.  When  I  looked  around,  before  the 


MEMBER    OF    STATE    ASSEMBLY        79 

session  was  well  under  way,  I  found  myself  alone. 
I  was  absolutely  deserted.  Men  from  Erie,  from  Suf 
folk,  from  anywhere,  would  not  work  with  me.  'He 
won't  listen  to  anybody,'  they  said,  and  I  would  not. 
My  isolated  peak  had  become  a  valley;  every  bit  of 
influence  I  had  was  gone.  The  things  I  wanted  to  do 
I  was  powerless  to  accomplish.  What  did  I  do?  I 
looked  the  ground  over  and  made  up  my  mind  that 
there  were  several  other  excellent  people  there,  with 
honest  opinions  of  the  right,  even  though  they  were 
different  from  mine.  I  turned  in  to  help  them,  and 
they  turned  to  and  gave  me  a  hand.  And  so  we 
were  able  to  get  things  done.  We  did  not  agree  in 
all  things,  but  we  did  in  some,  and  those  we  pulled 
at  together.  That  was  my  first  lesson  in  real  politics. 
It  is  just  this :  If  you  are  cast  on  a  desert  island  with 
only  a  screw-driver,  a  hatchet,  and  a  chisel  to  make  a 
boat  with,  why,  go  make  the  best  one  you  can.  It 
would  be  better  if  you  had  a  saw,  but  you  haven't. 
So  with  men.  Here  is  my  friend  in  Congress  who  is 
a  good  man,  a  strong  man,  but  cannot  be  made  to 
believe  in  some  things  which  I  trust.  It  is  too  bad 
that  he  doesn't  look  at  it  as  I  do,  but  he  does  not,  and 
we  have  to  work  together  as  we  can.  There  is  a  point, 
of  course,  where  a  man  must  take  the  isolated  peak 
and  break  with  it  all  for  clear  principle,  but  until  it 
comes  he  must  work,  if  he  would  be  of  use,  with  men 
as  they  are.  As  long  as  the  good  in  them  overbalances 
the  evil,  let  him  work  with  that  for  the  best  that  can 
begot." 

Mr.  Roosevelt  during  his  term  in  the  Assembly  had 
secured  such  a  hold  on  the  leadership  of  the  Repub 
lican  party  of  the  state  that  he  was  chosen  one  of  the 
four  delegates-at-large  to  the  National  Convention  in 
Chicago  in  1884. 


80  THEODORE    ROOSEVELT 

He  had  the  honor  of  being  the  chairman  of  the 
great  New  York  State  delegation,  and  was  one  of  the 
most  spectacular  members  of  that  convention,  partly 
because  in  his  short  public  life  he  had  attracted  na 
tional  attention  on  account  of  his  rigid  moral  reform 
notions  and  activities,  but  also  because  with  George 
William  Curtis,  Carl  Schurtz  and  others,  he  was  in 
favor  of  George  F.  Edmunds  of  Vermont  as  a  can 
didate  against  Mr.  Blaine.  Elaine  was  nominated; 
Curtis,  Schurtz  and  a  number  of  other  Republican 
leaders  bolted  the  ticket  and  voted  for  Cleveland. 
They  supposed  of  course  that  Roosevelt,  who  was  the 
real  Edmunds  leader,  would  follow  them,  but  they 
were  mistaken.  To  a  friend  he  wrote  a  letter  which 
announced  his  intentions  as  follows:  ''I  intend  to 
vote  the  Republican  Presidential  ticket.  A  man  can 
not  act  both  without  and  within  the  party ;  he  can  do 
either,  but  he  cannot  possibly  do  both.  I  went  in  with 
my  eyes  open  to  do  what  I  could  within  the  party; 
I  did  my  best  and  got  beaten,  and  I  propose  to  stand 
by  the  result.  I  am  by  inheritance  and  by  education 
a  Republican ;  whatever  good  I  have  been  able  to  ac 
complish  has  been  through  the  Republican  party;  I 
have  acted  with  it  in  the  past,  and  I  wish  to  act  with 
it  in  the  future. " 


EANCH  LIFE 


CHAPTER  V, 
RANCH    LIFE 

THIS  Harvard  graduate,  this  brilliant  young 
statesman,  needed  another  important  factor  to 
make  him  the  great  man  that  he  was,  and  that 
was,  the  tuition  of  nature  herself.  And  so,  impelled 
by  his  instincts  and  judgment,  he  entered  the  great 
university  of  the  Wild  West,  graduation  from  which 
was  as  necessary  as  from  Harvard,  to  make  him  the 
ideal  leader  of  the  century.  He  had  a  playful  spirit 
which  reveled  in  sport,  and  was  passionately  fond  of 
nature.  His  father  knew  how  good  the  country  was 
for  the  boy's  body  and  mind  and  he  arranged  it  so 
that  all  his  summers  were  spent  in  the  country  with 
the  birds,  with  the  flowers  and  fields,  and  forests,  and 
river,  and  bay,  and  horse,  and  oar,  and  gun.  And 
when  he  got  older,  he  sought  the  solitudes  of  the 
mountains  and  of  the  woods,  making  hunting  trips 
during  his  vacation  at  Harvard  for  deer  and  elk  to 
the  Adirondacks  and  the  big  woods  of  Maine.  These 
trips  were  an  excellent  preparation  for  the  limitless 
ranges  of  the  Wild  West,  for  the  paradise  of  the  na 
ture  lover  or  the  "  grizzly "  hunter.  While  he  was  a 
member  of  the  Legislature,  he  broke  away,  beguiled 

83 


84  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

irresistibly  by  the  charms  of  "Western  life,  and  made 
a  hunting  trip  for  Buffalo  in  North  Dakota.  In  his 
"Wilderness  Hunter"  he  thus  states  the  impression 
made  by  Western  nature  scenes  upon  the  one  visiting 
them:  "In  after  years  there  shall  come  forever  to 
his  mind  the  memory  of  endless  prairies  shimmering 
in  the  bright  sun;  of  vast,  snow-clad  wastes,  lying 
desolate  under  gray  skies ;  of  the  melancholy  marshes ; 
of  the  rush  of  mighty  rivers;  of  the  breath  of  the 
evergreen  forest  in  summer;  of  the  crooning  of  ice- 
armored  pines  at  the  touch  of  the  winds  of  winter ;  of 
cataracts  roaring  between  hoary  mountain  passes ;  of 
all  the  innumerable  sights  and  sounds  of  the  wilder 
ness  and  of  the  silences  that  brood  in  its  still  depths/' 

He  liked  the  rugged  hunters,  ranchmen  and  cow 
boys,  as  much  as  he  did  the  plains  and  mountains 
and  the  free  air  of  the  West.  He  hunted,  camped, 
rode  and  mingled  with  them  on  their  plains  and  fell 
in  love  with  them,  so  much  so  that  before  he  returned 
home  from  his  trip  he  had  purchased  the  Chimney 
Butte  Ranch  near  Medora,  North  Dakota,  for  $45,000, 
giving  his  check  on  the  spot  for  the  first  payment  of 
$10,000. 

In  the  year  1884  a  double  sorrow  fell  upon  Mr. 
Roosevelt,  the  death  of  his  mother,  and  within  two 
months  of  that  time,  the  death  of  his  first  wife,  Miss 
Alice  Hathaway  Lee,  of  Boston,  whom  he  married  just 
after  his  graduation.  She  died  after  she  had  given  to 
him  a  daughter,  who  is  now  Mrs.  Alice  Longworth. 
In  his  sorrow  he  flew  to  God's  book  and  spirit  for 
comfort,  and  then  his  impulses  drew  him  out  into  the 
solitude  and  stillness  of  nature  that  he  might  com 
mune  with  nature's  God,  and  rest  his  spirit  in  the 
chase.  In  the  same  year  his  fight  for  Edmunds 
against  Blaine  in  the  convention  had  completely  elimi- 


RANCH  LIFE  85 

nated  him  as  a  political  leader  and  he  had  the  time 
and  disposition  to  betake  himself  to  the  wide  spaces, 
solitudes  and  the  strenuous  hunting  of  the  West.  So 
he  went  out  to  live  with  the  cattle  and  with  those 
hearty  men  and  with  those  big  beasts  that  roam  the 
forests.  On  the  place  he  bought,  on  a  side  overlook 
ing  the  Little  Missouri,  he  found  the  skulls  of  two 
huge  elks  with  horns  interlocked;  both  had  died  in 
their  last  desperate  fight.  Just  here  he  built  his 
log  house  and  called  it  Elk  Horn  Ranch. 

The  late  Julian  Ralph  in  an  interview  with  Mr. 
Roosevelt  reports  him  as  saying:  "A  man  with  a 
horse  and  a  gun  is  a  picture  or  idea  that  has  always 
appealed  to  me.  Wayne  Reid's  heroes  and  the  life 
out  West  also  always  appealed  to  me.  I  wanted  to 
see  the  rude,  rough,  formative  life  in  the  Far  West 
before  it  vanished.  I  went  there  just  in  time.  I  was 
in  at  the  killing  of  the  buffalo,  in  the  last  big  hunt, 
in  1883,  near  Pretty  Buttes,  when  the  whites  and  the 
Sioux  from  Standing  Rock  and  Pine  Ridge  were  do 
ing  the  killing.  I  went  West  while  I  was  in  the  As 
sembly,  in  the  long  vacations — went  hunting — went 
to  the  Bad  Lands  and  shot  elk,  sheep,  deer,  buffalo, 
and  antelope.  I  made  two  hunting  trips,  and  in  1884 
I  started  my  cattle  ranch.  After  my  term  in  the 
Legislature,  and  until  I  was  appointed  Civil  Service 
Commissioner,  I  lived  most  of  the  time  out  West  in 
the  summers  and  spent  only  the  winters  in  New  York. 
I  never  was  happier  in  my  life.  My  house  out  there 
is  a  long  low  house  of  hewn  logs,  which  I  helped 
to  build  myself.  It  has  a  broad  veranda  and  rocking- 
chairs  and  a  big  fireplace  and  elk  skins  and  wolf  skins 
scattered  about, — on  the  brink  of  the  Little  Missouri, 
right  in  a  clump  of  cotton  woods ;  and  less  than  three 
years  ago  I  shot  a  deer  from  the  veranda.  I  kept  my 


86  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

books  there, — such  as  I  wanted, — and  did  a  deal  of 
writing,  being  the  rest  of  the  time  out  all  day  in  every 
kind  of  weather. ' ' 

He  was  not  a  gentleman  ranchman,  but  was  an 
actual,  practical  cowboy,  an  expert  cowpuncher,  with 
long  hours  in  the  saddle,  with  strenuous  and  annoying 
struggles  with  contrary  cattle  in  the  round-ups  and  at 
other  times.  He  never  spared  himself  doing  all  that 
he  required  of  the  cowboys  he  hired,  and  more  too. 
And  for  recreation  he  went  out  into  the  deep  forests 
and  rugged  mountains  and  hunted  for  big  game. 

Colonel  Roosevelt  told  me  a  story  connected  with 
his  ranch  life  which  was  thoroughly  amusing.  He 
said,  on  returning  from  the  East  to  his  ranch,  he 
found  that  the  boys  gave  him  condensed  milk  for  his 
coffee.  He  asked  the  cook,  "What  does  this  mean, 
condensed  milk  with  hundreds  of  cows  with  calves  in 
the  herds f"  The  cook  replied,  "Boss,  will  you  go 
milkin'  with  the  boys  to  get  some  cream  for  to-mor 
row?'*  And  he  said,  "I  certainly  will."  "We  got 
our  ponies  and  ropes  and  went  out  to  the  herd,"  he 
continued.  "We  picked  out  a  fine,  healthy-looking 
creature  that  we  thought  would  give  us  the  supply 
we  needed.  She  looked  right  up  into  my  face  and  in 
her  eye  said  to  me,  'I  know  what  you  are  after,  and 
you're  not  going  to  get  me.'  And  in  a  flash  she  darted 
off,  running  as  fast  as  she  could,  and  we  boys  after 
her  as  fast  as  our  ponies  could  go.  One  of  the  men 
threw  the  lasso,  catching  her  head  at  the  horns  and 
held  her ;  we  threw  her  down  on  the  ground,  tied  her 
legs  together  and  by  actual  force  took  the  milk  away 
from  her.  I  never  had  much  more  fun  in  my  life 
than  I  did  at  that  milking  bee.  The  fun  was  worth 
all  the  trouble,  but  I  never  after  that  asked  for  milk 
fresh  from  the  cow  for  my  coffee."  Whether  this 


RANCH  LIFE  87 

is  the  same  celebrated  old  roan  cow,  the  story  of  which 
has  made  so  many  millions  laugh,  I  do  not  know,  but 
he  told  it  with  a  relish  and  hearty  laugh  which  made 
it  one  of  the  funniest  I  ever  heard. 

In  his  life  on  the  plains  he  met  with  many  tough 
characters,  some  of  whom  undertook  to  impose  upon 
him,  but  always  with  damage  to  themselves.  The  fol 
lowing  incident  records  one  of  these  encounters: 

In  the  public  room  of  a  frontier  hotel  where  he  was  to 
spend  the  night,  Roosevelt  was  reading  one  evening  after 
supper,  shortly  after  his  arrival  in  the  West.  The  room  was 
dining-room,  bar-room,  office  and  living-room,  and  it  was 
crowded.  A  swaggering  fellow  stepped  up  to  the  bar  and 
ordered  everybody  to  drink.  Only  Roosevelt  remained 
seated.  He  continued  reading. 

"Who's  that  fellow?"  demanded  the  man  at  the  bar. 

"He's  a  tenderfoot,"  was  the  response. 

"Hey,  you,  Mr.  Four-eyes!"  shouted  the  Westerner,  "I 
asked  this  house  to  drink.  D'you  hear?" 

No  reply  came  from  Roosevelt.  The  Westerner  pulled  his 
pistol,  fired  across  the  room  and  advanced  on  the  tender 
foot  with  his  smoking  weapon. 

"When  I  ask  a  man  to  drink  with  me  I  want  him  to  do 
as  I  ask,"  he  declared. 

The  young  Roosevelt,  who  had  watched  the  advance  across 
the  room  from  under  his  eyelashes,  glanced  up  and  asked 
to  be  excused. 

"Not  much,"  was  the  reply.  "That  don't  go  down  here. 
Order  your  drink," 

The  young  man  from  the  East  got  up  easily  from  his 
chair,  remarking:  "Very  well,  if  I  must,  I " 

With  the  pause  in  the  words  came  a  full  right  swinging 
jolt  that  took  the  Westerner  on  the  point  of  the  jaw  and 
laid  him  on  the  floor.  He  was  astride  him  and  pinioned 
his  arms.  Then  he  threw  the  bully's  pistol  across  the  room 
and,  staring  at  him  through  his  glasses,  snapped  through 
the  teeth  that  later  were  to  become  so  familiar  to  the  Ameri 
can  public:  "And  when  I  intimate  that  I  don't  care  to 
drink  with  you,  just  understand  that  I  don't  care  to  drink." 

Referring  to  this  incident  Roosevelt  himself  made  this 


88  THEODORE    ROOSEVELT 

comment :  "I  was  never  shot  at  maliciously  but  once.  My 
assailant  was  a  broad-hat  old  ruffian  of  a  cheap  type.  The 
fact  that  I  wore  glasses,  together  with  my  evident  ardent 
desire  to  avoid  a  fight,  apparently  gave  him  the  impression 
— a  mistaken  one — that  I  would  not  resent  an  injury." 

What  enormous  exertion  was  involved  in  climbing 
those  rugged  mountains  and  in  pursuing  those  large 
and  dangerous  wild  beasts!  Yet  he  did  it  all  with 
eagerness  because  he  loved  it.  This  cowboy  ranchman 
in  scuffling  with  his  herds,  this  mighty  hunter  with 
his  gun,  built  up  one  of  the  most  powerful  bodies  in 
America  and  at  the  same  time  contributed  to  the 
building  up  of  one  of  the  greatest  minds  in  America. 
The  vigor  of  that  out-of-door  life  got  into  his  every 
muscle  and  nerve,  into  his  every  word  and  into  every 
act  he  performed  in  after  life. 

It  so  happened  that  Theodore  Roosevelt,  up  to 
the  time  of  his  election,  was  the  only  man  but  one 
who  was  born  in  a  city  who  ever  became  President, 
and  that  was  Hayes,  who  was  born  in  Dayton,  Ohio. 
Since  his  time  two  other  city-bred  men  have  occupied 
the  White  House — Taft,  who  was  born  in  Cincinnati, 
and  Wilson,  who  was  born  at  Norfolk,  Virginia.  If 
Theodore  Roosevelt  had  stayed  in  New  York  or  even 
had  gone  only  to  Harvard,  likely,  he  never  would 
have  been  President.  The  life  of  the  cowboy  and  the 
hunter  was  necessary  to  fit  him  for  the  Presidency. 
The  silence  and  solitude  and  life  of  nature  developed 
the  creative  faculty  as  nothing  else  could.  It  was  be 
cause  Lincoln  was  such  a  simple  child  of  nature,  and 
was  with  nature  so  much  in  its  silence  and  solitude, 
that  the  reflective  faculty  was  so  strongly  developed 
in  him,  that  faculty  so  necessary  for  the  highest  type 
of  leadership  among  men. 

Mr.  Roosevelt's  life  in  the  West  brought  him  into 
contact  not  only  with  cattle  and  cowboys  and  guides 


RANCH  LIFE  89 

and  " grizzly"  bears,  but  it  brought  him  into  contact 
with  the  virility  and  progress  of  a  pioneer  civiliza 
tion.  One  of  the  most  statesmanlike  acts  of  any 
President  was  the  Louisiana  Purchase,  negotiated  by 
Thomas  Jefferson  in  December,  1803,  for  $15,000,000. 
He  bought  of  France  the  territory  embraced  by  the 
modern  states  of  Arkansas,  Missouri,  Iowa,  Minne 
sota  west  of  the  Mississippi,  North  Dakota,  South  Da 
kota,  Nebraska,  nearly  all  Kansas,  and  Oklahoma,  the 
portions  of  Montana,  Wyoming,  and  Colorado  east 
of  the  Rocky  Mountains,  and  Louisiana  west  of  the 
Mississippi,  but  including  New  Orleans.  It  would 
take  very  many  billions  of  dollars  to  buy  this  ter 
ritory  now  with  its  abundant  crops  and  precious 
mines.  This  was  the  great  empire  which  appealed  to 
the  young  Roosevelt,  which  he  thought  about,  wrote 
about  in  his  "Winning  of  the  West,"  and  which  he 
knew  thoroughly  by  residence  in  it  and  his  active  par 
ticipation  in  its  affairs. 

In  his  address  at  the  laying  of  the  cornerstone  of 
the  Lewis  and  Clark  memorial  at  Portland,  Oregon, 
May  21st,  1903,  he  thus  refers  to  the  population  en 
tering  upon  this  Northwest  Territory:  "We  come  here 
to-day  to  lay  the  cornerstone  of  a  monument  that  is 
to  call  to  mind  the  greatest  single  pioneering  feat  on 
this  continent,  the  voyage  across  the  continent  by 
Lewis  and  Clark,  which  rounded  out  the  ripe  states 
manship  of  Jefferson  and  his  fellows  by  giving  to  the 
United  States  all  of  the  domain  between  the  Missis 
sippi  and  the  Pacific.  Following  their  advent  came 
the  reign  of  the  fur  trade ;  and  then,  some  sixty  years 
ago,  those  entered  whose  children  and  children's  chil 
dren  were  to  possess  the  land.  Across  the  continent 
in  the  early  40  's  came  the  ox-drawn,  canvas-topped 
wagons  bearing  the  pioneers,  the  stalwart,  sturdy, 


90  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

sun-burned  men,  with  their  wives  and  their  little  ones, 
who  entered  into  this  country  to  possess  it.  You  have 
built  up  here  this  wonderful  commonwealth,  a  com 
monwealth  great  in  its  past  and  infinitely  greater  in 
its  future.  The  men  gave  us  this  region  because  they 
were  not  afraid,  because  they  did  not  seek  the  living 
of  ease  and  safety,  because  their  life  training  was  not 
to  shrink  from  obstacles,  but  to  meet  and  overcome 
them." 

Roosevelt,  the  ranchman,  had  a  prophet's  eye  and 
saw  the  great  material,  mental  and  moral  civilization 
that  was  to  possess  that  empire;  he  knew  what  busy 
men  would  till  the  ground  over  which  his  cattle 
grazed ;  and  what  thrifty  cities  would  occupy  the  vast 
plains;  and  what  a  population  would  adorn  them. 
Up  to  the  time  he  went  out  to  his  ranch  on  the  plains, 
the  Eastern  people  knew  very  little  about  the  prairies 
of  the  West.  Until  about  1850  little  was  known  about 
the  prairies  by  American  authors,  who  for  the  most 
part  were  men  of  the  Atlantic  seaboard,  who  had  sel 
dom  if  ever  passed  the  Alleghanies.  Longfellow, 
Lowell  and  Whittier  knew  the  old  West*  only  by  hear 
say.  Only  Irving  and  one  or  two  other  prominent 
literary  men  had  some  personal  knowledge  of  it.  The 
men  of  the  West  were  too  busy  taming  the  wilderness 
to  write  romance  or  poetry  about  the  new  home  of 
literature.  To  the  literary  people  of  the  country  the 
prairie  was  the  great  American  desert.  The  settler 
without  capital  took  the  treeless  prairies  in  hand  be 
cause  they  were  cheap  and  treeless  land,  and  found 
that  they  would  grow  grass  and  grain.  The  railroads 
came  and  brought  them  fuel  and  a  market  for  their 
crops.  The  sod  house  or  hut  of  cottonwood  logs  gave 
way  to  the  square  pine  house  of  one  story,  and  then 
a  house  like  the  one  they  had  left  in  the  East;  and 


RANCH  LIFE  91 

now  has  come  the  home  of  fine  architecture  and  in 
terior  decoration  and  lovely  grounds.  Those  vast, 
monotonous,  marshy  districts  have  been  transmuted 
into  a  veritable  garden.  The  social  evolution  of  the 
prairie  has  been  as  marked  as  its  material  progress. 
It  is  an  empire  of  hardy,  intelligent,  industrious, 
thrifty  and  virtuous  people,  who  fear  God  and  love 
men,  who  want  the  school  and  church,  but  who  will 
not  tolerate  the  saloon. 

The  evolution  of  the  forest  and  the  mountain  has 
been  almost  as  great  as  that  of  the  prairie.  Sharp 
axes  have  turned  the  forest  into  productive  farms, 
and  the  rugged  hand  of  industry  has  turned  many 
mountain  districts  into  fruitful  farms  with  thrifty 
cities. 

Roosevelt  wrote  about  the  "Winning  of  the  West" 
— he,  himself,  won  the  West  as  no  other  one  man  ever 
did.  He  knew  intimately  its  geography,  its  farms,  its 
forestry,  its  mines,  its  population,  its  characteristics 
and  the  wild  creatures  that  inhabit  it.  No  man  living 
ever  interpreted  that  western  life  as  well  as  he,  and 
no  one  ever  incarnated  it  in  his  thought  and  action 
as  he  did — that  irresistible  strenuousness  greater  than 
that  of  any  man  of  our  time  was  literally  a  fresh 
breeze  from  the  West,  its  prairies,  its  mountains,  its 
sea. 

After  eighteen  years  of  home  life,  four  years  at 
Harvard,  three  years  in  the  Assembly,  he  was  fortu 
nate  in  having  this  post-graduate  course  of  three  years 
in  the  university  of  the  great  West  to  fit  him  for 
the  supreme  place  in  our  nation. 


CIVIL  SERVICE  COMMISSION 


CHAPTER  VI 
CIVIL  SERVICE  COMMISSION 

AFTER  these  strenuous  and  profitable  years  of 
ranch  life,  Mr.  Roosevelt 's  eye  turned  back  to 
the  great  city  again  and  to  the  whirl  of  poli 
tics  for  which  he  seems  to  have  been  made.  He  led 
the  Republican  ticket  in  a  three-cornered  fight  for 
the  mayoralty  of  New  York  City,  in  which  Abram 
S.  Hewitt  ran  on  the  Democratic  ticket  and  Henry 
George  on  the  United  Labor  platform.  Mr.  Hewitt 
was  elected  Mayor.  Mr.  Roosevelt  came  out  third  in 
the  race.  His  friends  thought  he  could  have  been 
elected,  if  a  large  number  of  Republicans  had  not 
been  afraid  that  Henry  George,  with  his  new  theory 
of  which  they  had  suspicions,  at  Jeast,  would  win. 
Hence,  they  voted  the  Democratic  ticket.  Though  de 
feated  in  this  mayoralty  fight,  he  again  became  a  na 
tional  figure  by  the  things  he  said  and  did  in  the  cam 
paign,  and  by  the  fact  that  so  young  a  man  as  he 
should  be  put  at  the  head  of  the  Republican  ticket 
for  such  a  responsible  office. 

He  had  supported  Benjamin  Harrison  in  his  cam 
paign  for  the  Presidency,  and  Mr.  Harrison  appointed 
him  as  a  Civil  Service  Commissioner,  a  job  which 

95 


96  THEODORE    ROOSEVELT 

nobody  wanted,  as  it  was  so  very  unpopular,  but 
which  Mr.  Roosevelt  accepted,  with  gratitude,  because 
he  saw  in  it  an  opportunity  for  usefulness;  a  call  to* 
carry  out  notions  of  reform  which  he  had  had  in  his 
own  mind  for  a  number  of  years,  and  the  chance  to 
fight  what  he  thought  was  one  of  the  greatest  evils 
of  American  politics  and  one  of  the  greatest  dangers 
to  the  American  commonwealth.  It  would  be  hard 
to  find  words  to  express  the  difficulty  of  the  task  to 
which  he  was  called.  For  seventy  years  it  had  been 
understood,  by  all  political  parties,  that  the  offices  of 
the  government  were  to  go,  with  the  election,  to  those 
who  were  victorious.  It  was  almost  universally  un 
derstood  that  the  spoils  of  office  belonged  to  the  suc 
cessful  candidates,  and  the  bosses  saw  to  it  that  their 
henchmen  received  them.  And  the  ward  politician, 
the  Assemblyman,  the  Congressman,  the  United  States 
Senator  paid  their  election  debts  with  the  offices  they 
distributed. 

During  those  seventy  years  the  average  man  said, 
"What  are  we  in  politics  for,  if  it  is  not  for  the  of 
fices?"  This  rule  that  "to  the  victor  belong  the 
spoils ' '  led  to  much  corruption  and  bribe-taking.  The 
spoils-giver  and  the  spoils-receiver  naturally  became 
the  bribe-givers  and  bribe-takers  and  a  deep-seated, 
moral  corruption  polluted  and  threatened  to  destroy 
our  free  form  of  government.  Some  wise  statesman 
had  secured  the  passage  of  a  National  Civil  Service 
Law.  This  law  had  been  on  the  statute  books  only 
six  years  when  this  vigorous  ranchman-reformer  took 
his  place  on  that  commission.  The  law  was  a  dead 
letter,  and  the  leaders  of  both  parties  did  all  they 
could  to  keep  it  so. 

Immediately  upon  taking  office  he  did  as  he  always 
had  done,  felt  the  sanctity  of  his  oath  and  set  himself 


CIVIL   SERVICE    COMMISSION  97 

to  work,  whole-heartedly,  to  keep  it.  At  the  very  start 
in  his  office  he  commenced  to  make  the  fur  fly  in  every 
direction.  He  did  not  hesitate  to  tackle  the  most  in 
fluential  member  of  the  House  of  Representatives,  or 
Senate  of  the  United  States,  or  even  a  member  of  the 
Cabinet  and  rebuke  his  wrong-doing  in  upholding  the 
spoils  system  and  fighting  the  Civil  Service  Commis 
sion.  Failing  to  repeal  the  law,  they  cast  reflection 
constantly  on  his  administration  of  it,  and  were  con 
tinually  asking  for  some  kind  of  investigation  to  ham 
per  or  destroy  the  working  of  the  law. 

In  one  of  those  investigations  one  of  the  insolent 
advocates  of  the  spoils  of  office  in  criticising  the  law 
said,  "You  yourself,  Commissioner  Roosevelt,  cannot 
take  an  examination  which  you  require  all  candidates 
for  office  to  take,  on  the  question  of  handwriting,  for 
instance,  with  those  little  pinched  letters  which  look 
like  a  lady's  hand?'*  The  Commissioner  replied 
promptly,  "That  is  true.  I  perhaps  cannot  take  a 
position  as  a  clerk  in  a  department,  but  I  am  not 
applying  for  that  place,  and  I  am  qualified  to  be  a 
Commissioner  of  Civil  Service,  I  think,  and  maintain 
its  principle  in  the  face  of  you  men  who  are  doing 
so  much  to  break  it  down  and  injure  our  govern 
mental  system." 

Afterward  President  Roosevelt  thus  recommends  the 
civil  service  idea  to  the  administration  in  the  Philip 
pine  Islands :  ' '  This  should  no  more  be  a  party  ques 
tion  than  the  war  for  the  Union  should  have  been  a 
party  question.  At  this  moment  the  man  in  highest 
office  in  the  Philippine  Islands  is  the  Vice-Governor, 
General  Luke  Wright,  of  Tennessee,  who  gallantly 
wore  the  gray  in  the  Civil  War  and  who  is  now 
working  hand  in  hand  with  the  head  of  our  army  in 
the  Philippines,  Adna  Chaffee,  who  in  the  Civil  War 


98  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

gallantly  wore  the  blue.  Those  two,  and  the  men 
under  them,  from  the  North  and  from  the  South,  in 
civil  life  and  in  military  life,  as  teachers,  as  admin 
istrators,  as  soldiers,  are  laboring  mightily  for  us  who 
live  at  home.  Here  and  there  black  sheep  are  to  be 
found  among  them ;  but,  taken  as  a  whole,  they  repre 
sent  as  high  a  standard  of  public  service  as  this  coun 
try  has  ever  seen.  They  are  doing  a  great  work  for 
civilization,  a  great  work  for  the  honor  and  the  in 
terest  of  this  nation,  and,  above  all,  for  the  welfare  of 
the  inhabitants  of  the  Philippine  Islands. " 

On  another  occasion,  as  President,  he  thus  speaks 
in  words  of  commendation  of  the  successful  working 
of  the  civil  service  department  of  the  government: 
"The  civil  service  law  has  been  on  the  statute  books 
for  twenty-two  years.  Every  President,  and  a  vast 
majority  of  heads  of  departments  who  have  been 
in  office  during  that  period,  have  favored  a  gradual 
extension  of  the  merit  system.  The  more  thoroughly 
its  principles  have  been  understood,  the  greater  has 
been  the  favor  with  which  the  law  has  been  regarded 
by  administrative  officers.  Any  attempt  to  carry  on 
the  great  executive  departments  of  the  government 
without  this  law  would  inevitably  result  in  chaos, 
The  Civil  Service  Commissioners  are  doing  excellent 
work ;  and  their  compensation  is  inadequate,  consider 
ing  the  service  they  perform. 

* '  The  statement  that  the  examinations  are  not  prac 
tical  in  character  is  based  on  a  misapprehension  of  the 
practice  of  the  Commission.  The  departments  are 
invariably  consulted  as  to  the  requirements  desired 
and  as  to  the  character  of  questions  that  shall  be 
asked.  General  invitations  are  frequently  sent  out 
to  all  heads  of  departments  asking  whether  any 
changes  in  the  scope  or  character  of  examinations  are 


CIVIL   SERVICE    COMMISSION  99 

required.  In  other  words,  the  departments  prescribe 
the  requirements  and  the  qualifications  desired,  and 
the  Civil  Service  Commission  cooperates  with  them  in 
securing  persons  with  these  qualifications  and  insur 
ing  open  and  impartial  competition.  In  a  large  num 
ber  of  examinations  (as,  for  example,  those  for  trades 
positions)  there  are  no  educational  requirements  what 
ever,  and  a  person  who  can  neither  read  nor  write 
may  pass  with  a  high  average.  Vacancies  in  the  ser 
vice  are  filled  with  reasonable  expedition  and  the  ma 
chinery  of  the  Commission,  which  reaches  every  part 
of  the  country,  is  the  best  agency  that  has  yet  been 
devised  for  finding  people,  with  the  most  suitable 
qualifications,  for  the  various  offices  to  be  filled. 
Written  competitive  examinations  do  not  make  an 
ideal  method  for  filling  positions,  but. they  do  repre 
sent  an  immeasurable  advance  upon  the  ''spoils" 
method,  under  which  outside  politicians  really  made 
the  appointments  nominally  made  by  the  executive 
officers,  the  appointees  being  chosen  by  the  politicians 
in  question,  in  the  great  majority  of  cases,  for  reasons 
totally  unconnected  with  the  needs  of  the  service  or 
of  the  public." 

Col.  E.  W.  Halford,  for  twenty-five  years  the  able 
editor  of  the  Indianapolis  Journal,  who  had  more  to 
do  than  any  other  one  man  in  making  Benjamin  Har 
rison  President,  and  who  was  the  private  secretary  to 
Benjamin  Harrison,  was  largely  responsible  for  the 
appointment  of  Theodore  Roosevelt  to  the  head  of  the 
Civil  Service  Commission,  and  thus  gave  him  his  first 
office  under  the  Federal  administration.  Knowing 
this  fact  and  having  been  a  personal  friend  of  Colonel 
Halford  for  over  fifty  years,  I  went  over  to  his  office 
on  Fifth  Avenue,  New  York,  and  asked  him  to  tell  me 
something  about  Mr.  Roosevelt's  relation  to  the  Civil 


100  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

Service  Commission  to  put  in  this  chapter.  He  cheer 
fully  consented  and  gave  me  the  following  facts,  say 
ing  that  he  had  given  some  of  them  to  the  Christian 
Advocate  and  Leslie's  Weekly  for  publication. 

He  said,  "Mr.  Roosevelt  was  in  the  forefront  of 
civil  service  advocates,  and  knowing  me  wrote,  urging 
that  Harrison  should  take  strong  grounds  for  that  re 
form,  which  the  general  did,  both  in  his  letter  of  ac 
ceptance  and  inaugural  address.  My  diary  shows 
that  on  the  19th  of  April,  1889,  Mr.  Lodge,  then  a 
member  of  the  House,  called  at  my  room  in  the  White 
House  and  suggested  the  appointment  of  Mr.  Roose 
velt,  in  the  reorganization  of  the  Civil  Service  Board. 
That  afternoon,  during  one  of  the  daily  walks  to 
gether  after  the  office  routine,  I  discussed  with  the 
President  the  suggestion  Mr.  Lodge  had  made.  This 
was  repeated  as  occasion  arose,  and  on  May  3rd  the 
President  directed  me  to  wire  Mr.  Roosevelt  to  come 
to  Washington.  On  the  6th  of  May  he  had  an  inter 
view  with  the  President,  and  on  the  7th  of  May  he 
was  commissioned  as  Civil  Service  Commissioner.  On 
the  13th  of  May  Mr.  Roosevelt  wrote  me  a  note  which 
I  have  just  re-read  as  follows : 

"  '  Please  tender  to  the  President  my  appreciation 
of  the  honor  conferred  upon  me,  which  I  shall  do  my 
best  to  deserve.  I  also  wish  to  thank  you,  particu 
larly,  for  what  you  have  done.  I  think  the  President 
nominating  Halford  a  brave  as  well  as  a  wise  act.' 

' '  I  had  not  kept  in  mind  this  last  somewhat  cryptic 
remark,  and  am  now  puzzled  by  it.  Of  the  President 's 
wisdom,  of  course,  there  can  be  no  doubt;  but  just 
what  Roosevelt  had  in  mind  as  to  the  President's 
' bravery'  I  cannot  imagine,  unless  it  was  because  of 
my  birthplace,  which,  as  I  now  recall,  was  objected 
to  by  a  few  professional  British  lion  tail-twisters. 


CIVIL   SERVICE    COMMISSION          101 

"On  coming  to  Washington  Mr.  Roosevelt  honored 
me  with  his  friendship  and  confidence. 

"On  taking  up  his  duties  in  Washington,  before 
either  he  or  I  had  definitely  settled  upon  homes  there, 
we  sat  together  at  the  same  hotel  table,  and  a  some 
what  close  relationship  developed  between  us.  He 
did  not  have  calm  seas  and  quiet  sailing  always ;  and 
many  times  we  met  together  to  talk  things  over  in 
order  that  they  might  be  smoothed  out  somewhat. 
Mr.  Roosevelt  had  some  of  the  qualities  of  a  knight- 
errant;  at  least  he  did  not  run  away  from  an  oppo 
nent.  Among  my  papers  I  find  this  card : 

JULY  15 — Can  you  dine  with  me  at  Welcker's  at  7  P.  M. 
to  meet  Batcheldor  and  Wharton  (Assistant  Secretaries, 
respectively,  of  the  Treasury  and  State  Departments).  We'll 
drink  to  the  health  of  the  Tom  Hendricks  School  of  Civil 
Service  Reform. 

Yours  sincerely, 

THEODORE  ROOSEVELT. 

"He  objected  earnestly  to  a  man  who  was  incom 
petent,  but  his  whole  nature  revolted  against  one 
who  had  a  bad  character.  Here  is  an  extract  from 
a  letter  which  he  wrote  me  from  Sagamore  Hill  under 
date  of  October  18,  1889,  entering  a  positive  objec 
tion  to  the  appointment  of  one  he  knew  to  be  a  very 
bad  man  to  an  important  office.  This  is  the  letter : 

I  have  another  small  son,  which  accounts  for  my  pres 
ence  here.  I  heard  there  was  some  talk  of  nominating  a 

man  named as  U.  S.  Marshal  (in  a  Western 

State  or  Territory).  If  so,  I  beg  that  he  will  not  be  nomi 
nated  until  I  can  be  heard.  He  is  a  thorough  scamp,  con 
nected  with  cattle-thieves,  ballot-box  stuffers,  and  the  like. 
He  used  always  to  claim  to  be  a  Democrat.  I  know  him 
well,  for  I  had  him  knocked  out  of  his  place  as  cattle  in 
spector  on  account  of  his  rascality. 
Yours  sincerely, 

THEODORE  ROOSEVELT. 


102  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

''There  is  no  uncertain  sound  in  that  note.  The 
trumpet  so  often  heard  in  later  years  was  even  then 
in  good  tune. 

"There  is  a  deep  strain  of  humor  in  this  letter 
which  I  got  from  him  dated  January  3rd,  1890: 

I  enclose  a  piece  by  Governor  Thompson  (his  colleague 
on  the  Commission)  in  one  of  the  recent  Centuries.  .  .  .  We 
always  mean  to  stand  up  for  the  men  who  stand  up  for 
the  reform.  As  for  those  who  make  public  war  on  it,  why, 
they  must  expect  to  have  the  public  attacks  publicly  repelled. 
Your  friend,  the  Quaker, 

T.  E. 

"He  suggests  in  the  letter  that,  like  the  Quakers, 
he  is  such  a  pacifist  that  nobody  would  expect  him 
to  fight. 

"We  had  many  conferences  over  the  troubles  he 
encountered  as  Commissioner,  and  I  helped  to  keep 
things  straight  between  him  and  the  President,  who 
was  besieged  with  complaints  from  the  antis  in  Re 
publican  ranks,  who  were  neither  few  nor  feeble  folk, 
Mr.  Roosevelt  was  an  alert  and  aggressive  knight, 
with  lance  always  ready  for  a  thrust  against  any  op 
ponent.  The  President  was  usually  at  poise,  espe 
cially  in  the  face  of  opposition.  When  Harrison  was 
chairman  of  the  Carnegie  Hall  Missionary  Confer 
ence  he  introduced  Governor  Roosevelt  as  one  who 
seemed  at  times  'somewhat  impatient  for  righteous 
ness  ';  and  referred,  jocularly,  to  the  days  when  he 
(Harrison)  had  been,  in  a  degree,  responsible  for  him. 

"A  very  prominent  Republican  Congressman  was 
in  my  room  one  day  after  he  had  made  a  bitter  attach 
in  the  House  upon  Civil  Service  reform,  repeating 
many  of  the  cheap  current  charges  and  criticisms 
upon  the  work  of  the  Commission,  and  particularly 
singling  out  Mr.  Roosevelt  for  sarcastic  comment- 


CIVIL   SERVICE    COMMISSION          103 

While  he  was  talking  with  me  the  Commissioner  came 
in.  They  did  not  speak  to  each  other,  and  I  was 
tactless  enough  to  introduce  them;  when  almost  im 
mediately  the  fireworks  began,  and  in  a  minute  or 
two  the  lie  passed.  I  got  between  the  two,  and  the 
Congressman  at  once  left  the  room.  Mr.  Roosevelt 
apologized  to  me,  and  said  he  realized  that  any  man 
who  struck  another  in  the  President's  house  could  not 
remain  his  appointee,  and  he  had  determined  if  blows 
were  exchanged  at  once  to  write  out  his  resignation. 

"The  sequel  to  this  story,  as  related,  is  that  some 
years  afterward,  in  the  same  room,  President  McKin- 
ley  and  the  Congressman  were  having  a  friendly  chat. 
Mr.  Roosevelt  entered  and,  seeing  who  was  present, 
sat  down  in  a  corner  chair,  awaiting  his  departure. 
The  Congressman,  without  apparent  change  in  man 
ner,  but  in  a  voice  distinctly  heard,  said:  'McKinley, 
you  remember  a  fellow  named  Roosevelt,  who  was 
Harrison's  Civil  Service  Commissioner.  He  was  the 
most  impracticable  man  ever.  I  notice  you  have,  as 
Assistant  Secretary  of  the  Navy,  a  person  with  the 
same  name,  but  it  can't  be  the  same  man,  for  your 
man  is  about  the  most  efficient  officer  I  have  ever 
known.'  Mr.  Roosevelt  sprang  to  his  feet,  walked 
across  the  room,  extending  his  hand  to  his  old-time 
enemy,  saying,  'Put  it  there;  it's  all  right,  hereafter.' 
They  shook  hands  heartily,  and  from  that  day  re 
mained  the  best  of  friends.  It  was  Roosevelt 's  way. ' ' 

Mr.  Roosevelt  remained  at  the  head  of  that  Civil 
Service  Commission  from  1889  to  1895.  During  that 
time  he  increased  the  offices  subject  to  Civil  Service 
examination  from  14,000  to  40,000,  and  served  his 
country  so  magnificently  in  those  brave,  strenuou£ 
years  that,  had  he  never  done  anything  else,  he  would 
have  earned  the  lasting  gratitude  of  his  countrymen. 


©  Underwood  &  Underwood,   X.   Y. 


PRESIDENT    THEODORE    ROOSEVELT    LEAVING     STAND    AFTER    HIS 
INAUGURATION   ADDBFSS 


POLICE  COMMISSIONER  OF  NEW  YORK 


CHAPTER  VII 
POLICE  COMMISSIONER  OF  NEW  YORK 

ONE  of  the  spasms  of  reform  in  New  York  City 
politics  which  overturned  Tammany  Hall  was 
the  one  in  1895,  in  which  William  L.  Strong, 
a  merchant,  was  elected  Mayor  on  the  issue  of  a  busi 
ness  administration.  As  he  was  elected  on  a  reform 
ticket  he  concluded  he  would  bring  a  reformer  into 
his  administration,  and  hearing  of  a  certain  Theodore 
Roosevelt,  who  had  been  making  such  a  racket  at 
Washington  as  Civil  Service  Commissioner,  concluded 
that  he  would  offer  him  the  head  of  the  Street  Clean 
ing  Department.  This  proposition  did  not  appeal  to 
Mr.  Roosevelt,  and  he  declined  it.  He  wanted  a  heav 
ier  job  to  tackle  than  cleaning  streets.  Hence  Mayor 
Strong  appointed  him  President  of  his  Police  Com 
mission,  never  dreaming  that  he  was  getting  such 
a  buzz-saw  on  his  hands  as  he  did  in  the  intense, 
irresistible,  persistent,  fearless  fighter  and  real  re 
former,  Theodore  Roosevelt. 

One  of  the  first  things  the  new  Commissioner  did 
was  to  stun  the  Mayor  as  much  as  the  friends  and 
enemies  of  law  and  decency  by  giving  an  order  that 
on  the  next  Sunday  all  saloons  were  to  be  closed,  and 

107 


108  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

that  if  the  proprietors  did  not  close  them  they  would 
be  arrested  by  the  police  and  prosecuted  for  an  in 
fraction  of  the  State  law.  As  pastor  of  the  Park 
Avenue  Methodist  Church,  New  York  City,  I  preached 
a  sermon  on  that  Sunday  morning,  asking  the  people 
of  our  church  and  Methodists  generally,  and  the  min 
isters  and  members  of  all  denominations,  Protestant, 
Catholic  and  Hebrew,  and  the  citizens  who  were  mem 
bers  of  no  church  but  loved  law  and  order,  to  stand 
behind  Mr.  Roosevelt  in  his  effort  to  compel  the  law- 
defying  and  crime-breeding  saloons  to  close  on  Sun 
day.  Sure  enough,  some  of  the  liquor  dealers  who 
had  always  been  stronger  than  the  law  and  authori 
ties  considered  the  threat  a  joke  and  kept  open.  And, 
of  course,  the  Commissioner,  strong  in  intellect  and 
of  determined  will,  was  in  dead  earnest  and  not  jok 
ing,  and  put  six  thousand  policemen  on  the  job  of 
detecting  and  arresting  these  lawbreakers.  He  scared 
the  brewers,  distillers  and  saloon-keepers,  till  they 
fairly  shivered  and  their  teeth  chattered. 

On  the  Monday  morning  following  I  went  down  to 
the  police  headquarters  to  see  Commissioner  Roose 
velt.  I  said  to  him,  "Mr.  Roosevelt,  you  do  not  know 
me ;  I  never  met  you ;  I  saw  you  once.  It  was  at  the 
National  Republican  Convention  in  Chicago  which 
named  James  G.  Blaine  for  the  Presidency  and  John 
A.  Logan  for  the  vice-presidency.  You  were  in  the 
New  York  delegation,  in  the  group  with  George  Wil 
liam  Curtis,  who  was  working  for  the  nomination  of 
Senator  Edmunds  for  the  presidency.  You  had  on  a 
little  straw  hat  and  were  not  so  fleshy  as  you  are  now. 
You  were  young  and  had  not  been  long  out  of  Har 
vard,  but  you  were  one  of  the  notables  of  the  conven 
tion  and  you  were  pointed  out  to  me  as  such.  I  did 
not  speak  to  you,  nor  have  I  seen  you  since  that  day. 


POLICE    COMMISSIONER  109 

I  have  come  down  this  morning  to  introduce  myself 
to  you,  and  to  congratulate  you  on  your  courage  in 
determining  to  close  the  Sunday  saloons.  The  city 
has  waited  for  twenty-five  years  for  the  coming  of 
such  a  man.  It  ought  not  to  be  counted  a  heroic  thing 
for  a  man  to  keep  his  oath  solemnly  made  and  to  earn 
his  salary  by  the  discharge  of  his  official  duty,  but 
the  moral  sense  of  the  community  is  so  low  through 
the  polluting  influence  of  the  liquor  dealers,  and  their 
collusion  with  corrupt  officials,  that  a  man  is  counted 
a  hero  who  dares  keep  his  oath  to  enforce  the  law 
or  earn  his  salary  by  so  doing.  I  will  stand  by  you 
till  the  last  hour  in  the  day;  you  are  in  a  fight  for 
the  people  and  for  God,  and  I  belong  in  it  and  am 
proud  to  have  such  a  leader.  Our  church  will  stand 
by  you,  too.  In  my  sermon  yesterday  morning  I  asked 
all  good  people  to  sustain  you  in  this  crusade. " 

The  Commissioner  said:  "I  saw  what  you  said  in 
your  pulpit  in  the  report  of  this  morning 's  papers, 
and  thank  you  very  much.*' 

' '  I  am  only  one, ' '  I  continued,  ' '  and  an  humble  one 
at  that,  but  you  may  count  on  me  to  stand  with  you 
on  the  front  of  the  firing  line.  Whenever  you  shoot 
your  big  gun  down  here  in  Mulberry  Street,  just  listen 
and  you  will  hear  its  echo  in  the  crack  of  a  little  fine- 
bored  pistol  on  the  corner  of  Park  Avenue  and 
Eighty-sixth  Street,  and  that  pistol  will  be  in  my 
hand  and  I  will  be  shooting  at  the  thing  at  which  you 
aim." 

He  said  enthusiastically:  "You're  the  stuff!  I  am 
looking  for  you  as  much  as  you  are  looking  for  me"; 
and,  taking  my  hand  warmly,  he  added,  "I  will  stand 
with  you  in  the  fight  till  the  end."  Then  he  con 
tinued:  "Do  you  know  that  you  are  the  first  man 
whose  opinion  I  count  of  any  value  who  has  com- 


110  THEODORE    ROOSEVELT 

mended  my  action  ?  Do  you  see  those  letters  and  tele 
grams  on  that  table?  There  are  perhaps  fifty  of  them. 
Every  single  one  criticises  me;  some  abuse  me  bit 
terly.  These  are  some  of  the  quotations  from  them: 
'What  an  ass  you  are';  'You  are  the  biggest  crank 
and  fool  in  the  world' ;  'You  have  wrecked  the  Repub 
lican  party';  'You  have  killed  yourself  politically, 
you  will  never  be  heard  from  again';  You  are  the 
deadest  political  duck  that  ever  died  in  a  pond.'  " 

"Commissioner  Roosevelt,"  I  answered,  "I  do  not 
believe  a  word  of  them.  For  every  enemy  you  make 
you  will  gain  ten  friends.  In  the  long  run,  the  most 
popular  thing  a  man  can  do  politically  is  to  do  the 
right  thing  morally.  You  are  not  dead,  but  have  just 
begun  to  live  politically." 

He  answered  with  considerable  feeling :  "  I  have  en 
tered  this  fight  with  no  idea  of  making  friends  or 
fearing  enemies ;  that  has  nothing  to  do  with  the  ques 
tion.  It  is  simply  a  question  of  duty.  That  law  is 
on  the  statute  books  and  I  have  taken  an  oath  to 
enforce  it  with  the  rest,"  and  looking  up,  he  contin 
ued,  "With  the  help  of  God,  I  intend  to  do  so. 
Whether  my  course  will  bring  friends  or  foes,  promo 
tion  or  relegation  to  the  rear,  does  not  enter  an  in 
stant  into  my  calculation.  It  is  mine  only  to  do 
present  duty  which  is  plain  to  me. ' ' 

On  taking  his  hand  to  leave,  I  said,  "In  your  vision 
of  righteousness  and  moral  courage  in  pursuing  it 
you  are  the  stuff  of  which  I  think  a  good  President 
could  be  made.  I  should  like  to  vote  for  you  for  that 
office  some  day."  And  I  did. 

There  was  a  memorable  scene  at  the  beginning  of 
the  fight,  when  the  frenzied  brewers,  distillers,  saloon 
keepers  and  their  hired  representatives  appeared  at  a 
hearing  they  had  called  before  Mayor  Strong,  and 


POLICE    COMMISSIONER  111 

how  bitterly  they  denounced  Mr.  Roosevelt,  and  how 
insolently  they  demanded  a  change  in  his  policy  or 
his  removal.  They  said  it  was  a  cosmopolitan  com 
munity,  that  the  Sunday  closing  feature  of  the  law 
had  never  been  observed,  and  they  insisted  that  the 
Mayor  require  the  Commissioner  instantly  to  stop  his 
insane  policy  and  give  a  "liberal"  enforcement  of 
the  excise  law. 

When  the  liquor  men  had  finished  their  say  the 
Commissioner  made  his  reply.  He  said:  "Your 
Honor,  these  gentlemen  have  savagely  attacked  me 
and  my  policy  of  Sunday  closing,  and  they  have  de 
manded  of  you  that  you  require  me  to  give  a  '  lib 
eral'  enforcement  of  the  excise  law."  With  ve 
hemence  and  biting  sarcasm,  he  continued:  "These 
men  want  me  to  enforce  the  law  a  'little  bit,'  to 
enforce  it  a  little,  tiny  bit.  Your  Honor,  I  do  not 
know  how  to  do  such  a  thing  and  I  shall  not  begin 
to  learn  now.  I  did  not  take  an  oath  to  enforce  the 
law  a  tiny  bit.  The  great  Empire  State  did  not  put 
that  law  on  the  statute  books  to  be  enforced  a  tiny  bit, 
and  so  long  as  I  am  at  the  head  of  the  Police  De 
partment  of  the  city  I  shall  do  all  in  my  power  to 
enforce  the  law  honestly  and  fearlessly."  The  terri 
ble  assault  of  the  liquor  dealers  and  others  of  great 
influence  scared  Mayor  Strong  almost  out  of  his  wits, 
and  the  Commissioner  had  to  brace  up  the  Mayor's 
backbone  with  one  hand  while  he  hammered  the 
saloons  with  the  other. 

The  bitter  opposition  to  the  closing  of  the  saloons 
by  Commissioner  Roosevelt  and  the  intense  hatred  of 
the  liquor  men  engendered  by  it,  reached  its  climax 
in  the  threats  of  assassination,  which  were  many  and 
serious.  My  barber  said  to  me  when  he  wiped  the  pow 
der  off  my  face  and  let  me  go  from  the  chair,  "I  want 


112  THEODORE    ROOSEVELT 

to  see  you  a  moment  if  you  can  spare  it,  not  out  here 
where  people  can  hear  me,  but  in  the  back  room  where 
we  can  be  to  ourselves."  I  went  with  him  and  in  a 
voice  barely  above  a  whisper  and  with  a  face  such  as 
one  would  wear  at  a  funeral,  he  said,  "I  want  to 
warn  you  of  the  danger  you  are  in.  You  have  been 
working  with  Mr.  Roosevelt  in  closing  the  saloons  on 
Sunday.  It  is  the  intention  of  the  liquor  people  to 
kill  him  and  to  kill  you.  I  hear  the  conversations 
that  go  on  in  my  shop  and  I  am  told  privately  that 
this  is  not  simply  rumor,  but  that  it  is  the  settled 
determination  to  assassinate  him  and  you."  I  re 
plied,  "I  intend  to  stay  in  this  fight  with  Roosevelt 
at  any  risk. ' ' 

The  next  time  I  saw  the  new  Police  Commissioner 
I  told  of  the  warning  from  the  barber,  and  he  said, 
"Doctor,  I  get  stacks  of  those  threats  every  day. 
They  put  an  infernal  machine  in  my  office  the  other 
day  wound  up  to  kill  me;  the  boys  discovered  it  in 
time  and  saved  me.  But  I  am  not  afraid  of  one  of 
them  singly  or  all  of  them  together.  There  are  gun 
men  in  this  city  that  would  kill  me  and  kill  you  for 
$100,  and  there  are  many  that  would  put  up  the 
money,  but  bad  men  are  miserable  cowards.  I  am  not 
afraid  of  one  of  them,  and  I  will  go  down  on  the  East 
Side  as  often  as  I  please  and  as  late  at  night  as  I  care 
to,  and  I  will  be  hunting  them  while  they  are  hunting 
me,  and  I  tell  you,  my  friend,  if  I  succeed  in  this 
task,  my  life  and  your  life  and  the  lives  of  our  citi 
zens  will  be  far  more  secure  and  New  York  will  be  a 
safer  and  better  city."  He  continued,  "Doctor,  life 
is  a  tragedy ;  there  is  a  risk  at  every  step  of  the  way, 
and  duty  too.  I  shall  do  duty  and  leave  the  risk  to 
God.  It  is  only  the  weakling  and  the  coward  that 
halts  at  danger ;  it  is  the  true  man  who  scorns  it  and 


POLICE    COMMISSIONER  113 

does  what  is  right.  These  threats  are  only  a  challenge 
to  greater  courage  and  a  more  strenuous  fight. ' ' 

It  is  a  strange  coincidence  that  the  man  that  shot 
him  while  he  was  making  a  speech  was  an  ex-saloon 
keeper  from  New  York  City. 

I  noticed  the  singular  politeness  as  well  as  dignity 
of  a  policeman  at  Fifth  Avenue,  at  a  shopping  street. 
" Would  you  like  to  be  promoted?"  I  said  one  day. 
He  answered,  ' '  There  isn  't  a  ghost  of  a  chance  of  my 
being  promoted.  I  am  a  poor  man  and  have  no  money 
to  buy  any  promotion  or  any  pull  of  any  kind.  I 
guess  I  will  have  to  stick  on  this  job."  "I  under 
stand  that  under  the  Roosevelt  administration  money 
is  not  needed  for  promotion,  and  that  the  offer  of  it 
would  be  a  reason  for  putting  a  man  to  the  rear,"  I 
said  to  him.  "I  happen  to  be  a  friend  of  Commis 
sioner  Roosevelt,  and  if  you  would  like  to  change  your 
beat  I  will  talk  with  the  Commissioner  about  you.  Mr. 
Roosevelt  is  a  man  who  requires  fitness  for  the  task. 
You  come  up  to  our  parsonage  at  any  time  you  indi 
cate  and  I  will  find  out  something  about  your  individ 
ual  history. ' '  He  said, ' '  That  is  very  kind  of  you  and 
I  will  be  up  to  see  you  to-morrow."  He  came,  and 
after  finding  out  some  facts  about  his  family  and 
personal  history,  I  asked  him,  "Did  you  ever  do  a 
brave  thing?  Did  you  ever  take  any  risk?  Did  you 
ever  make  any  dangerous  arrest?"  He  said,  "Yes, 
I  have  had  several  close  shaves  in  my  life.  This 
one  I  think  is  the  closest.  I  was  going  down  the  Bow 
ery  to  the  Police  Headquarters  one  day  and  I  saw 
a  crook  steal  a  watch,  from  a  man's  pocket  and  run 
for  the  door  of  the  car.  The  man  cried:  'That  man 
has  got  my  watch/  but  I  had  seen  the  fellow  take  it 
before  the  scream  came  and  ran  after  him.  We  both 
got  off  the  car  in  full  speed  and  he  got  off  a  few  feet 


114  THEODORE    EOOSEVELT 

ahead  of  me.  I  ran  fully  a  square  before  I  could  gain 
on  him  and  when  I  got  just  where  I  was  ready  to  grab 
him,  he  turned  about  suddenly,  whipped  out  a  re 
volver  and  shot  me  in  the  abdomen.  I  felt  I  had  got 
ten  my  death  shot  but  intended  to  get  my  man  any 
how.  I  caught  him,  slung  him  to  the  ground,  took 
his  revolver  away  from  him,  beat  him  almost  into 
insensibility  with  the  handle  of  it  and  then  dragged 
him  by  force  to  Police  Headquarters.  I  was  sure  the 
bullet  would  kill  me,  for  I  felt  the  blood  running  down 
my  legs  and  a  sense  of  exhaustion.  When  I  gave  my 
prisoner  up,  I  said :  "  He  has  killed  me.  Now  lay  me 
out  on  this  lounge  and  send  for  a  doctor.  When  they 
examined  me  they  found  that  the  bullet  had  struck 
a  button  of  my  underwear  and  deflected,  and  that 
what  I  thought  was  blood  was  only  perspiration  run 
ning  down  my  limbs.  I  was  the  happiest  man  on 
earth  when  told  that  ball  had  not  entered  my  body. ' ' 

I  did  not  write  the  Commissioner  nor  telephone  him, 
but  went  down  on  purpose  to  see  him  about  the  case. 
As  I  told  the  story  to  him  I  got  so  excited  over  it  in 
my  own  heart  that  he  interrupted  me,  saying : ' '  Good, 
good,  splendid!  that's  the  kind  of  stuff  we  want  in 
this  department.  That's  the  kind  of  a  man  that  shall 
have  a  chance/'  Then  he  touched  a  button  and 
called  the  clerk  and  said:  "Have  Officer  So-and-So 
report  to  me  at  10  o'clock  to-morrow  morning."  The 
officer  reported  to  him,  and  the  next  time  I  saw  him 
he  was  riding  a  nice  horse  and  with  the  roundsman's 
straps  on  his  sleeve,  and  when  I  called  on  the  late  Li 
Hung  Chang  at  the  Waldorf  Astoria,  during  his  visit 
to  America,  the  policeman  who  had  charge  of  the  re 
ception  was  my  handsome  friend  with  his  beautiful 
officer's  uniform,  a  lieutenant  of  the  New  York  police. 

A  policeman  called  at  my  parsonage  one  morning 


POLICE    COMMISSIONER  115 

and  said:  " Commissioner  Roosevelt  wants  to  see  you 
at  once.  It  is  on  a  matter  of  importance. "  When 
I  got  there  he  took  me  into  his  private  room  and  said : 
"I  am  just  informed  that  there  is  a  movement  on 
hand  to  legislate  me  out  of  office.  The  united  city 
papers  have  bombarded  me,  the  leaders  of  both  parties 
have  conspired  to  suppress  me.  They  have  not  suc 
ceeded  in  killing  me,  and  they  think  their  only  plan 
to  get  rid  of  me  will  be  to  pass  a  law  abolishing  my 
office  and,  of  course,  me  with  it.  I  have  sent  for 
you  hurriedly  because  I  want  to  know  what  you  think 
about  the  situation. ' '  I  said  to  him :  ' '  Commissioner, 
I  do  not  like  the  situation.  I  regard  it  as  serious. 
In  fact,  I  think  that  the  knife  is  inconveniently 
close  to  your  jugular. "  He  said  laughingly:  "It 
looks  that  way  to  me."  "You  can  do  without  the 
Commissionership, "  I  said  to  him,  "but  the  city 
cannot  do  without  you.  We  will  not  surrender,  and 
will  not  run,  Commissioner.  They  shall  not  touch  a 
hair  of  your  head.  Our  church  people  are  splendidly 
organized  in  this  fight  and  we  will  make  it  mighty 
uncomfortable  for  any  leader  or  leaders  to  snuff  you 
out  in  any  such  fashion."  I  immediately  went  to  the 
Methodist  Preachers'  Meeting,  to  which  I  belonged, 
and  which  was  enthusiastically  in  favor  of  the  saloon- 
closing  movements,  and  told  them  the  sneaking  plan 
of  those  who  were  leading  the  saloon  forces  for  the 
Commissioner's  removal  and  asked  them  in  their  in 
dividual  charges  to  speak  about  it  and  institute  an 
earnest  protest  against  it.  I  then  went  to  a  number 
of  other  preachers'  meetings  and  told  them  of  the 
plot  and  asked  them  to  unite  vigorously  in  the  fight 
against  it,  which  they  consented  to  do  and  did.  I  im 
mediately  opened  communication  with  the  Republican 
leaders  at  Albany  and  elsewhere,  telling  them  what 


116  THEODORE    ROOSEVELT 

disastrous  consequences  politically  would  follow  such 
a  foolish  and  wicked  course;  that  the  good  people  of 
the  State  were  with  Roosevelt  and  would  settle  at  the 
polls  with  any  man  or  party  who  should  attempt  to 
punish  him  for  doing  his  duty.  The  legislative  plot 
to  eliminate  Roosevelt  was  thus  nipped  in  the  bud. 
I  wrote  a  lengthy  article  for  The  North  American 
Review  appealing  to  the  conscience  and  loyalty  of  all 
lovers  of  law  and  order  to  stand  with  Mr.  Roosevelt  in 
the  fight  and  received  from  him  a  letter  which  is  very 
precious  to  me  now.  It  is  as  follows : 

POLICE  DEPARTMENT  OF  THE  CITY  OF  NEW  YORK 

300  MULBEBBY  STBEET,  NEW  YOBK,  OCTOBER  23,  1895. 

MY  DEAB  DB.  IQLEHABT  : 

I  have  just  been  reading  your  admirable  article  in  the 
North  American  Review  on  the  saloons  and  the  Sabbath. 
Permit  me  to  say  how  deeply  I  appreciate  the  valiant  and 
effective  fight  you  have  waged  for  decent  government  in 
this  city. 

Faithfully  yours, 

THEODOBE  ROOSEVELT. 

Commissioner  Roosevelt  was  also  a  member  of  the 
Board  of  Health,  and  with  his  dear  friend,  Jacob  Riis, 
secured  tenement-house  reforms  whose  healthful, 
physical  and  moral  influence  will  be  felt  for  genera 
tions  to  come.  Roosevelt  did  more  than  enforce  the 
Sunday  law.  He  so  organized  the  force  and  impressed 
himself  on  it,  that  it  ceased  to  be  the  tool  of  the  under 
world  and  was  ever  after  stronger. 

The  Theodore  Roosevelt,  the  man  as  I  knew  him, 
and  the  world  knew  him,  stands  out  life-size  in  the 
following  letter : 


POLICE    COMMISSIONER 


117 


July  2nd  .  1895. 
Rev.  Ferdinand  C.  Iglehart, 
1M  K.  86th.  8t.. 

Hew  f o  r  *  . 

My  dear  Bin- 

I  thank  you  for  the  slip  yon  sent  me,  and  I  thank 
7oa  .tin  more  cordially  for  what  yd.  eald  in  your  aeraon. 

AB     J  told  you,  it  la  with  me  a  aimply'Wtion 
of  otowrvlng  my  oath  of  office.     Nothing  that  either  the  aaloon- 
k..».r.  or  the  joliUeian.  .ay,  will  alter  in  any  degree  my  »o.l- 

•BMU 

Blneerely  yours, 


At  the  close  of  our  two  years'  fight  President  Mc- 
Kinley  appointed  Mr.  Roosevelt  Assistant  Secretary 
of  the  Navy. 


SPANISH- AMERIC AN  WAR 


CHAPTER  VIII 
SPANISH-AMERICAN  WAR 

JUST  before  leaving  the  police  department  oi 
New  York,  Commissioner  Roosevelt  sent  for  me 
to  come  to  his  office.  He  greeted  me  with  these 
words,  "Doctor,  I  have  good  news  to  tell  you.  It  is 
good  for  me,  and  I  think  you  will  rejoice  with  me 
over  it.  It  is  this :  President  McKinley  has  appointed 
me  assistant  secretary  of  the  navy,  and  my  heart  is 
bounding  over  the  fact,  and  it  goes  without  saying, 
I  have  accepted  the  position.  Senator  Henry  Cabot 
Lodge,  one  of  the  ablest  and  best  men  of  this  country, 
and  one  of  the  best  friends  I  have  in  the  world,  an 
old  Harvard  chum,  and  some  other  influential  friends, 
have  secured  this  appointment  from  President  Mc 
Kinley."  He  said,  "It  looks  like  the  Lord  is  on  my 
side,  to  give  me  an  honorable  way  out  of  this  beastly 
job,  thankless  and  perplexing  to  the  highest  degree. 
And  yet  I  am  not  sorry  I  tackled  it  and  gave  two  years 
of  my  life  to  it.  I  believe  I  have  made  things  better. 
I  have  gotten  good  discipline  for  anything  else  that 
may  follow  in  life."  He  continued,  "My  new  job 
is  exactly  to  my  liking.  From  my  earliest  recollection 
I  have  been  fed  on  tales  of  the  sea  and  of  ships. 
My  mother's  brother  was  an  admiral  in  the  Confed 
erate  navy,  and  her  deep  interest  in  the  Southern 

121 


122  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

cause  and  her  brother's  calling  led  her  to  talk  to  me 
as  a  little  shaver  about  ships,  ships,  ships,  and  fight 
ing  of  ships,  till  they  sank  into  the  depths  of  my  soul. 
And  when  I  first  began  to  think,  in  any  independent 
and  consecutive  order,  for  record  at  Harvard,  I  began 
to  write  a  history  of  the  Naval  War  of  1812.  And 
when  the  professor  thought  I  ought  to  be  on  mathe 
matics  and  the  languages,  my  mind  was  running  to 
ships  that  were  fighting  each  other/' 

Mr.  McKinley  did  not  want  the  war  with  Spain, 
and  Mr.  Long,  Secretary  of  the  Navy,  was  still  more 
opposed  to  the  war,  but  Theodore  Roosevelt's  far 
vision  saw  that  Cuba  was  oppressed  and  that  there 
soon  would  be  a  just  cause  for  war  with  Spain.  He 
set  himself  diligently  to  repair  our  navy,  to  improve 
its  marksmanship  and  in  every  way  to  fit  it  for  the 
sea  war,  which  he  believed  would  come.  What  he  did 
in  the  short  time  he  was  in  this  office  is  little  less 
than  miraculous.  In  the  war  he  saw  impending,  he 
felt  that  it  would  be  necessary  to  have  the  ablest  com 
mander  in  the  navy  in  charge  of  the  Asiatic  Squad 
ron.  He  was  convinced  that  Admiral  Dewey  was  that 
man,  and  he  went  to  work  to  secure  his  appointment 
to  that  position  and,  with  the  aid  of  the  senators  from 
Dewey 's  state  and  others,  he  succeeded  in  securing 
his  appointment. 

On  Saturday  afternoon,  February  25,  1898,  Roose 
velt  happened  to  be  acting  Secretary  of  the  Navy  and 
sent  out  the  following  cablegram,  which  made  his 
tory,  which  made  the  United  States  a  world-wide 
nation : 

DEWEY — HONGKONG. 

Order  the  squadron,  except  the  Monocacy,  to  Hongkong. 
Keep  full  of  coal.  In  the  event  of  declaration  of  war,  Spain, 
your  duty  will  be  to  see  that  the  Spanish  Squadron  does 


SPANISH-AMERICAN  WAR  123 

not  leave  the  Asiatic  coast  and  then  offensive  operations  in 
the  Philippine  Islands.    Keep  Otympia  until  further  orders. 

ROOSEVELT. 

This  policy  was  counted  so  rash  by  his  superiors 
that  it  is  said  that  he  was  never  permitted  to  be  acting 
Secretary  of  the  Navy  again,  but  the  telegram  had 
been  sent  and  was  not  recalled.  In  two  months  from 
that  time  war  was  declared,  and  Dewey,  all  ready, 
slipped  out  of  Hongkong  and  smashed  the  Spanish 
fleet  in  Manila  Bay. 

The  assistant  secretary,  with  as  high  a  type  of  pa 
triotism  as  any  man  ever  had,  felt  it  to  be  his  duty 
to  go  out  in  the  field  and  fight  with  the  army  of  his 
nation  for  the  defense  of  his  flag.  On  hearing  of  his 
determination,  I  wrote  him  an  earnest  letter  in  which 
I  said,  "You  have  done  so  much  in  getting  the  navy 
ready,  you  understand  it  so  well,  this  is  to  be  a  naval 
war,  you  can  serve  the  country  better  by  staying  in 
the  navy  department  than  in  going  out  with  the 
army."  He  wrote  me  back  promptly,  thanking  me 
for  my  advice,  and  said,  "I  have  done  more  perhaps 
than  any  one  man  in  bringing  on  this  war,  and  I  feel 
it  my  duty  to  go  out  in  the  field  if  I  have  to  leave  my 
body  there.  The  question  of  danger  from  fevers  or 
bullets  does  not  enter  a  moment  into  my  calculation. 
My  country  is  first,  and  it  can  have  my  services,  or  it 
can  have  me. ' ' 

He  talked  the  whole  difficult  matter  over  with  his 
old  Harvard  chum,  Leonard  Wood,  and  they  organ 
ized  the  famous  Rough  Riders'  Regiment  which,  next 
to  Dewey 's  fight,  was  the  most  spectacular  feature  of 
the  Spanish-American  War.  This  regiment  was  a 
strange  combination  of  Westerners,  cowboys  and 
"bloods"  from  Fifth  Avenue;  of  the  rude  youth  of 
the  plains  and  the  cultured  graduate  of  Harvard— 


124  THEODORE    ROOSEVELT 

but  all  bound  to  Theodore  Roosevelt  as  their  leader 
by  his  unspeakable  magnetism  and  fastened  to  each 
other  by  their  lofty  patriotism  and  heroic  service  on 
the  field.  Colonel  Wood  was  promoted  and  Theodore 
Roosevelt  was  made  colonel  of  the  regiment.  The 
boys  fairly  worshipped  him.  He  never  called  on  his 
men  to  do  a  task  that  he  would  not  be  willing  to  do 
himself,  or  to  suffer  a  sacrifice  which  he  would  not 
gladly  endure  himself.  He  knew  every  man  in  his 
regiment  by  name,  and  the  boys  say  that  when  food 
was  short  he  spent  as  high  as  five  thousand  dollars 
out  of  his  own  pocket  to  get  something  for  them  to 
eat.  His  story  one  day  of  dividing  his  food  and  his 
blanket  with  the  boys  and  enduring  the  hardships  of 
the  trenches  with  them  brought  tears  to  my  eyes- • 
tears  of  love  and  pride. 

Some  of  his  enemies  in  his  gubernatorial  campaign 
charged  that  he  had  shot  a  Spaniard  in  the  back, 
which,  of  course,  was  a  falsehood,  although  it  is  no 
disgrace  to  shoot  the  enemy  in  that  part,  if  he  shall 
turn  his  back  to  the  bullets.  But  Reverend  Bowman 
gave  me  the  true  version  of  the  story,  as  Colonel 
Roosevelt  told  it  to  him.  The  Colonel  said  to  him 
that  in  one  of  the  battles  two  snipers  jumped  up  sud 
denly  out  of  the  high  grass  just  in  front  of  him  and 
aimed  their  rifles  pointblank  at  him.  Neither  of  the 
shots  touched  him,  and  he,  drawing  his  gun  quickly, 
shot  one  of  the  men  to  death  and  would  have  gotten 
the  other  if  he  had  not  made  his  escape  very  rapidly. 

The  stories  of  Colonel  Roosevelt's  personal  heroism 
in  battle  are  among  the  most  priceless  legacies  of 
our  nation. 

Theodore  Roosevelt,  the  ranchman,  the  cowboy,  the 
rough  rider,  the  Governor,  the  great  man  of  history, 
appears  at  his  best  in  the  address  which  he  made  at 


SPANISH-AMERICAN  WAR  125 

a  reunion  of  the  Rough  Riders  at  Las  Vegas,  N.  M., 
in  the  month  of  June,  1899.  Standing  in  his  Rough 
Rider 's  suit  with  five  thousand  people  enthusiastically 
cheering  him,  he  waved  his  hand  for  silence  and  said : 

Just  at  this  time  I  would  not  have  left  New  York  State 
for  any  purpose  save  to  attend  the  reunion  of  my  old  regi 
ment,  and  for  that  purpose  I  would  have  gone  to  Alaska, 
or  anywhere  else,  for  the  bond  that  unites  us  together  is 
as  close  as  any  bond  of  human  friendship  can  be. 

It  was  our  good  fortune  to  be  among  those  accepted,  when 
the  country  called  to  arms  a  year  ago  last  spring,  and 
when  ten  men  volunteered  for  every  one  that  could  be 
chosen.  I  think  I  may  say,  without  boasting,  that  the  regi 
ment  did  its  duty  in  every  way  and  with  its  record  is  a 
subject  for  honorable  pride,  not  only  as  regards  the  mem 
bers  themselves,  but  the  country  at  large.  I  am  proud  of 
you  because  you  never  complained  and  never  flinched.  When 
you  went  to  war  you  knew  you  would  not  have  an  easy 
time;  you  expected  to  encounter  hardships,  and  you  took 
them  without  a  murmur.  You  were  all  readiness  to  learn 
promptness  and  obedience,  which  makes  it  possible  to  turn 
the  American  volunteer  so  soon  into  a  first-class  type  of 
fighting  man. 

Of  those  who  landed  for  the  brief  campaign  in  the  tropi 
cal  midsummer  against  Santiago,  one-fourth  were  killed  or 
wounded,  and  three-fourths  of  the  remainder  were,  at  one 
time  or  another,  stricken  down  by  fever.  Many  died,  but 
there  is  not  one  among  you  so  poor  in  spirit  that  he  does 
not  count  fever,  wounds  and  death  itself  as  nothing,  com 
pared  with  the  honor  of  having  been  able  to  serve  with  the 
regiment  under  the  flag  of  the  United  States  in  one  of  the 
most  righteous  wars  which  this  country  has  seen. 

This  was  a  typical  American  regiment.  The  majority  of 
its  members  came  from  the  Southwest,  but  not  all.  We 
had  in  our  ranks  Easterners,  Westerners,  Northerners, 
Southerners,  Catholics,  Protestants,  Jews,  Gentiles — men 
whose  parents  were  born  in  Germany  or  Ireland  and  men 
whose  parents  were  born  on  the  banks  of  the  James,  the 
Hudson  and  at  Plymouth  Rock  nearly  three  centuries  ago; 
and  all  were  Americans  in  heart  and  soul,  in  spirit  and  pur 
pose — Americans,  and  nothing  else.  We  knew  no  distinction 


126  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

of  creed,  birthplace,  or  residence.  All  the  creed  for  us  was 
that  a  man  should  do  his  duty,  and  show  himself  alert, 
patient  and  enduring,  good  in  camp  and  on  the  march,  and 
valiant  in  battle. 

In  administering  this  great  country  we  must  know  no 
North,  South,  East,  or  West;  we  must  pay  no  heed  to  a 
man's  creed;  we  must  be  indifferent  as  to  whether  he  is 
rich  or  poor,  provided  only  he  is  indeed  a  good  man,  a  good 
citizen,  a  good  American.  In  our  political  and  social  life 
alike  in  order  to  succeed  permanently,  we  must  base  our 
conduct  on  the  Decalogue  and  the  Golden  Rule;  we  must 
put  in  practice  those  holy  virtues,  for  the  lack  of  which  no 
intellectual  brilliancy,  no  material  prosperity,  can  ever 
atone.  It  is  a  good  thing  for  a  nation  to  be  rich;  but  it 
is  a  better  thing  for  a  nation  to  be  the  mother  of  men  who 
possess  the  qualities  of  honesty,  of  courage  and  of  common 
sense. 

I  am  proud  of  the  way  in  which  you  have  taken  up  the 
broken  threads  of  your  lives,  in  which  you  have  gone  back 
to  the  ranch,  the  mine  and  the  counting-room.  In  so  doing 
you  show  yourselves  to  be  typical  American  citizens,  for  it 
has  always  been  the  pride  of  our  country  that  an  American, 
while  most  earnestly  desirous  of  peace,  was  ever  ready  to 
show  himself  a  hard  and  dangerous  fighter  if  need  should 
arise,  and  that,  on  the  other  hand,  when  once  the  need  had 
passed,  he  could  prove  that  war  had  not  hurt  him  for  the 
work  of  peace,  and  that  he  was  all  the  fitter  to  do  this  work 
for  having  done  the  other  too.  We  may  be  called  to  war 
but  once  in  a  generation,  and  we  most  earnestly  hope  that 
we  shall  not  have  to  face  war  again  for  many  years.  The 
duties  of  peace  are  always  with  us,  and  these  we  must 
perform  all  our  lives  long,  from  year's  end  to  year's  end, 
if  we  are  to  prove  ourselves  in  very  fact  good  citizens  of 
the  commonwealth.  We  must  work  hard  for  the  sake  of 
those  dependent  upon  us ;  we  must  see  that  our  children  are 
brought  up  in  a  way  that  will  make  them  worthy  of  the 
great  inheritance  which  we,  their  fathers,  have  ourselves 
received  from  those  that  went  before  us.  We  must  do  our 
duty  by  the  State.  We  must  frown  upon  dishonesty  and 
corruption,  and  war  for  honesty  and  righteousness. 

Let  me  say  a  word  to  those  to  whom  our  thoughts  should 
return  at  such  a  time,  to  those  among  the  living  and  among 
the  dead,  to  our  absent  living  comrades,  and  especially  to 


SPANISH-AMERICAN  WAR  127 

our  former  commander,  now  Major-General  Leonard  Wood, 
whose  administration  of  the  Province  of  Santiago  has  re 
flected  the  utmost  credit  not  merely  upon  himself,  but  upon 
the  nation  so  fortunate  as  to  have  him  in  her  service.  We 
send  to  them  the  heartiest  and  most  loyal  greetings.  With 
these  men  we  hope  in  no  distant  future  to  strike  hands 
again,  and  as  long  as  we  live  and  they  live  we  wish  to  be 
bound  together  by  most  indissoluble  ties.  But  when  we  come 
to  speak  of  our  dead  comrades,  of  the  men  who  gave  their 
lives  in  the  fierce  rush  to  the  jungle  fight,  or  who  wasted 
to  death  in  the  fever  camps,  we  can  only  stand  with  bared 
heads  and  pray  that  we  may  so  live  as,  at  the  end,  to  die 
as  worthily  as  these,  our  brothers,  died.  Allen  Capron,  in 
the  sunny  prime  of  youth,  in  his  courage,  his  strength  and 
his  beauty;  "Bucky"  O'Neill,  than  whom  in  all  the  army 
there  breathed  no  more  dauntless  soul — of  these  and  other 
gallant  comrades,  the  men  who  carried  the  rifles  in  the 
ranks,  all  we  can  say  is  that  they  proved  their  truth  by 
their  endeavor,  that  in  the  hour  of  our  greatest  need  these 
rose  level  to  the  need,  and  gallantly  and  cheerfully  gave 
to  their  country  the  utmost  that  any  man  can  give — their 
lives,  for  we  read  in  the  Holy  Writ  "that  greater  love  hath 
no  man  than  this,  that  he  lay  down  his  life  for  a  friend." 

And  these  men  so  loved  their  country  that  they  gallantly 
gave  their  lives  for  her  honor  and  renown  and  for  the 
uplifting  of  the  human  race.  Now  their  work  is  over,  their 
eyes  are  closed  forever,  their  bodies  moulder  in  the  dust, 
but  the  spirit  that  was  in  them  cannot  die,  and  it  shall  live 
for  time  everlasting. 

We  are  a  great  nation.  We  must  show  ourselves  great, 
not  only  in  the  ways  of  peace,  but  in  the  preparedness  for 
war  which  best  insures  peace.  We  must  upbuild  our  navy 
and  army  until  they  correspond  to  the  new  need  which 
the  new  country  will  bring.  Above  all,  my  comrades  and 
my  fellow-countrymen,  we  must  build  up  in  this  country 
that  spirit  of  social  and  civic  honesty  and  courage  which 
alone  can  make  this  nation  reach  the  highest  and  most 
lasting  greatness. 


GOVERNOR  OF  NEW  YORK 


CHAPTER 
GOVERNOR  OF  NEW  YORK1 

COLONEL  ROOSEVELT  returned  from  the  war 
of  a  few  months,  just  before  the  meeting  of  the 
Republican  State  Convention  in  September, 
1898,  and  he  was  considered  a  possible  candidate  for 
the  nomination  for  Governor.  Taking  up  a  New  York 
paper  one  morning  I  noticed  that  Senator  Platt  had 
stated  that  Colonel  Roosevelt  would  not  be  nominated, 
but  that  Governor  Black  would  be  renominated  for 
a  second  term.  Senator  Platt  was  the  "easy  boss," 
and  I  knew  that  unless  there  was  a  change  in  the  sit 
uation  the  Colonel  would  not  be  nominated. 

The  Senator  was  at  Manhattan  Beach,  at  the  Orien 
tal  Hotel.  I  went  down  to  see  him  about  the  nom 
ination  of  Colonel  Roosevelt  for  the  governorship.  He 
was  cold  on  the  subject  and  discouraged  me. 

"What  are  your  objections  to  the  Colonel's  candi 
dacy  ?"  I  asked. 

' '  Well,  he  is  rash  and  impulsive,  * '  said  the  Senator. 

"Yes/'  I  answered,  "he  is  impulsive,  but  his  im 
pulses  are  good,  and  if  you  will  notice,  he  is  running 
in  the  right  direction." 

"But  he  slops  over,"  the  Senator  continued. 
131 


132  THEODORE    ROOSEVELT 

1 '  Yes,  he  does, ' '  I  replied, ' '  because  there  is  so  much 
of  him  to  slop.  He  is  so  large  that  he  often  fills  the 
vessel  to  overflowing.  He  has  an  overplus  of  vitality 
and  manhood/' 

The  Senator  declared, ' '  He  made  such  a  dismal  fail 
ure  in  the  administration  of  the  police  commissioner- 
ship  that  his  unwisdom  and  unpopularity,  in  the  judg 
ment  of  many,  take  him  out  of  serious  consideration 
for  the  nomination.  He  has  provoked  the  violent 
hostility  of  the  liquor  people  of  the  State. " 

"  Sena  tor, "  I  persisted,  "I  disagree  with  you  en 
tirely.  The  moral  heroism  he  manifested  in  his  fight 
against  the  Sunday  saloons  of  New  York  will  be  an 
asset  to  the  Republican  party.  Remember,  there  are 
a  good  many  people  in  the  State  who  live  above  the 
Harlem  and  who  have  no  love  for,  nor  even  patience 
with,  the  saloon  on  Sunday,  or  on  any  other  day,  and, 
besides,  I  believe  the  number  of  voters  in  New  York 
City  who  are  unfriendly  to  the  saloon  is  often  under 
estimated.  Are  you  not  too  smart  a  man  and  leader 
to  attempt  to  compete  with  Tammany  Hall  for  the 
saloon  vote?  The  liquor  dealers  may  promise  to  vote 
for  your  ticket,  but  on  election  day  they  will  vote  for 
Tammany  Hall,  which  they  count  a  friend  to  be  relied 
upon.  You  can  run  Theodore  Roosevelt  and  win  with 
out  the  saloon  vote.  You  can  win  in  spite  of  it.  So 
able  a  man  as  David  Bennett  Hill — so  great  a  national 
figure  that,  backed  by  his  party  in  the  State,  he  surely 
would  have  received  the  nomination  for  the  presidency 
on  the  Democratic  ticket  in  1892,  if  Cleveland  had  not 
taken  it  from  him — made  the  fatal  political  mistake 
of  overestimating  the  saloon  vote  in  this  State,  and 
was  driven  from  power  largely  on  account  of  his 
supposed  friendliness  to  the  saloon.  When  he  ran  for 
the  governorship  in  1894  it  was  reported  that  he 


GOVERNOR  OF  NEW  YORK  133 

said  he  would  rather  have  the  votes  of  the  saloon 
keepers  than  of  the  preachers. 

' '  Whether  he  ever  made  the  statement  or  not,  it  was 
so  generally  believed  that  the  preachers  took  him  at 
his  word  and  fought  him,  and  the  church  people  of 
both  parties  turned  against  him  and  beat  him  by 
more  than  100,000  votes.  On  account  of  that  mistake 
you  are  in  Mr.  Hill's  place  in  the  United  States  Sen 
ate  and  have  displaced  him  as  the  dominant  political 
figure  of  the  State.  If  you  make  the  mistake  he  did 
and  punish  Roosevelt  for  having  fought  the  Sunday 
saloons,  it  will  so  anger  the  church  people  that  they 
will  bury  your  ticket  under  an  avalanche  of  150,000 
votes.  You  will  step  down  and  out,  and  Mr.  Hill 
will  return  to  the  political  leadership  of  the  State. 

' '  There  are  many  people  who  are  not  total  abstainers 
who  count  the  saloon  a  bad  institution  and  will  knock 
it  at  the  polls,  and  many  more  who  resent  the  im 
pertinence  and  impiety  of  the  Sunday  saloon  and  will 
work  actively  against  your  ticket.  Senator,  I  have 
always  voted  a  straight  Republican  ticket ;  but  if 
you  depose  Colonel  Roosevelt  for  having  done  his 
sworn  duty  as  police  commissioner  I  will  bolt  the 
ticket  this  fall,  and  you  will  find  my  ballot  in  that 
avalanche  of  votes.  I  never  made  a  political  speech 
in  my  life,  and  yet  if  you  turn  down  Roosevelt,  be 
cause  you  fear  the  saloon  power  will  beat  him,  I  will 
take  the  stump  and  make  a  score,  or  if  need  be  fifty, 
speeches  from  here  to  Buffalo  between  now  and  elec 
tion  day  and  tell  the  people  how  it  happened,  and  ask 
them  what  they  think  of  it.  There  is  especial  reason 
for  caution  this  fall.  You  will  be  handicapped  by 
the  fact  that  this  is  an  'off*  year,  not  a  presidential 
one,  and  by  the  severe  criticism  on  the  Republican 
party  for  its  administration  of  the  canals  of  the  State ; 


134  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

and  you  will  need  Roosevelt's  physical,  mental  and 
moral  enthusiasm  to  pull  your  ticket  through/* 

The  Senator  said,  "  Another  strong  reason  why  I 
object  to  Roosevelt's  nomination  is  that  he  is  such 
an  independent  I  fear  he  might  go  back  on  the  Re 
publican  party,  if  he  were  to  be  elected  Governor,  and 
fight  those  of  us  who  put  him  in  office,  just  like  that 
fool  of  a  Strong,  whom  we  Republicans  elected  Mayor 
of  New  York  and  who  had  scarcely  taken  his  seat  be 
fore  he  turned  against  us,  who  had  elected  him,  and 
gave  the  city  back  into  the  hands  of  Tammany  Hall 
at  the  next  election."  "Senator,"  I  said,  "I  think 
your  fears  are  unfounded.  While  I  am  sure  he  would 
not  stand  for  any  wrongdoing  in  his  party,  I  consider 
him  a  sound  Republican  and  feel  that  you  could  rely 
on  him  as  such."  Senator  Platt,  who  was  a  very  keen 
man,  and  one  of  the  best  judges  of  human  nature  I 
ever  saw,  sensed  the  conflict  which  indeed  did  come 
between  him  and  the  Colonel  over  the  policies  and 
leadership  of  the  Republican  party  of  the  State. 

It  had  gotten  to  be  5 :30  o  'clock  in  the  afternoon. 
"Who  should  get  off  the  train  I  was  to  take  for  home 
but  B.  B.  Odell,  Jr.,  chairman  of  the  Republican  State 
Committee;  Joseph  Dickey,  Mr.  Bain,  and  others  of 
Newburgh,  my  personal  friends.  Mr.  Odell  said: 
"Hello,  what  are  you  doing  down  here?" 

"I  came  down  to  see  Senator  Platt,"  I  replied,  "to 
try  to  persuade  him  to  nominate  Colonel  Roosevelt 
for  the  Governorship.  The  paper  this  morning  re 
ported  that  he  had  told  you  boys  last  night  that  the 
Colonel  would  not  be  nominated." 

Mr.  Odell  said,  "I  am  glad  you  came  down.  I  am 
for  Roosevelt  myself  and  so  are  my  friends  here.  I 
think  he  is  the  logical  candidate  as  a  war  hero  and 
reformer,  and  would  poll  a  heavy  vote  and  be  elected. 


GOVERNOR  OF  NEW  YORK  135 

The  Senator  has  faith  in  your  judgment,  thinks  that 
you  reflect  the  moral  sentiment  of  the  State  pretty 
accurately;  I  wish  you  would  stay  down  and  have 
another  interview  with  Mr.  Platt.  Suppose  you  go 
back  to  the  hotel  and  have  dinner  with  me  and  see 
him  again  to-night. " 

After  dinner  I  had  another  talk  with  the  Senator, 
in  which  I  said :  ' '  Senator,  do  not  think  for  a  moment 
that  Colonel  Roosevelt  sent  me  down  to  see  you  in  the 
interest  of  his  nomination.  He  does  not  know  I  am 
here.  I  have  never  spoken  to  him  on  the  subject. 
While  I  have  corresponded  with  him  ever  since  he  was 
Police  Commissioner,  even  since  he  came  back  to  Mon- 
tauk  Point  to  be  mustered  out,  the  matter  of  the 
Governorship  has  never  been  mentioned  by  either.  I 
am  here  because  I  have  seen  Theodore  Roosevelt  at 
close  range  for  two  years  and  know  him  to  be  a  man 
of  great  ability  and  all-daring  moral  courage,  and 
believe  that  as  a  leader  his  administration  would  work 
for  righteousness." 

The  Senator  was  so  cold  and  keen  in  answering 
my  arguments  and  unresponsive  to  my  warm  appeals, 
that  I  went  home  thoroughly  discouraged.  Before 
going  to  bed  I  sat  down  and  wrote  a  letter  to  the 
Colonel  at  Montauk  Point,  in  which,  among  other 
things,  I  said :  ' '  I  had  thought  the  Republican  leaders 
would  have  had  wisdom  enough  to  offer  you  the  nom 
ination  for  the  governorship,  but  in  a  morning  paper 
I  saw  that  Senator  Platt  had  said  you  would  not  be 
the  candidate.  I  knew  that  settled  the  matter,  if  that 
opinion  continued.  So,  without  your  advice  or  con 
sent,  I  hurried  down  to  the  Oriental  at  Manhattan 
Beach  to-day  and  had  two  long,  earnest  interviews 
with  the  Senator,  in  which  I  tried  to  convince  him  of 
the  wisdom  of  your  nomination.  But  he  discouraged 


136  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

me,  for  my  visit  seemed  to  have  made  no  impression 
on  him  whatever.  Whenever  I  would  come  around 
to  the  plea  that  he  be  friendly  to  your  nomination,  a 
sphinx  would  have  been  eloquent  compared  to  the 
sudden  silence  of  his  lips.  Unless  he  sfiall  change  his 
mind  I  fear  your  nomination  will  be  impossible. ' ' 

The  Colonel  was  nominated.  After  the  Convention, 
one  of  the  men  with  whom  I  went  back  to  the  hotel 
for  dinner,  the  day  of  the  interviews,  told  me  that, 
when  I  left  that  night,  the  Senator  called  the  group 
of  State  leaders,  who  were  stopping  at  the  hotel.  He 
said  that  he  told  them  the  night  before  that  Governor 
Black  would  have  to  be  renominated  or  there  would 
be  a  split  in  the  Republican  party,  but  Doctor  Igle- 
hart  had  been  down  to  see  him  and  had  given  him 
four  reasons  why  Colonel  Roosevelt  should  be  nom 
inated,  three  of  which  he  considered  valid.  On  the 
strength  of  them  he  had  concluded  to  reverse  his  opin 
ion  and  favor  Mr.  Roosevelt's  nomination.  The  gen 
tlemen  said  that  from  that  moment  Roosevelt  was  as 
good  as  nominated.  Senator  Platt  afterward  told  me 
that  it  was  my  visit  to  Manhattan  Beach  and  the 
arguments  I  urged  which  changed  his  mind.  Colonel 
Roosevelt  told  me  that  it  was  my  visit  to  the  Senator 
that  afternoon  that  had  much  to  do  in  putting  him 
on  the  ticket,  and  after  his  nomination  he  sent  me  the 
following  letter: 

OYSTEB  BAY,  L.  I.,  OCTOBER  3,  1898. 
DB.  FEBDINAND  IGLEHABT, 
245  Liberty  Street, 

Newburgh,  N.  Y. 
MY  DEAB  DB.  IGLEHABT: 

Nobody  has  a  better  right  to  be  pleased  than  yourself.    Be 
sure  I  appreciate  what  you  have  done. 

With  warm  regards,  I  am, 

Faithfully  yours, 

THEODOBE  ROOSEVELT. 


©  Underwood  &  Underwood.  X.   Y. 
ROOSEVELT    OX    BOARD    U.     S.     S.    ALGONQUIN,    CHARLESTON,    S.    C. 


GOVERNOR  OF  NEW  YORK  137 

Just  after  his  election  as  Governor  he  sent  me  a 
beautiful  telegram  of  greeting  and  appreciation  which 
money  cannot  buy. 

Chairman  Odell  worked  ably,  loyally  and  success 
fully  in  the  campaign  for  Colonel  Roosevelt,  and  he 
was  elected  by  a  majority  of  17,786  votes. 

Governor  Roosevelt  entered  upon  his  great  office 
with  vigor  and  enthusiasm,  making  every  question  and 
department  tingle  at  his  touch;  a  reformer  by  birth 
and  by  years  of  education,  he  found  evils  in  the 
State  which  he  felt  demanded  immediate  attention. 
Grounded  in  his  notions  of  Civil  Service  Reform,  he 
insisted  upon  the  re-enactment  of  a  Civil  Service  Law 
which  had  been  declared  unconstitutional  by  the  court 
and  made  the  law  stronger  than  the  original  one  was. 

He  had  been  down  in  the  slum  district  of  New  York 
when  he  was  a  young  man  just  entering  politics;  he 
had  been  down  into  this  submerged  region  while 
Police  Commissioner  and  as  a  member  of  the  Board  of 
Health  he  saw  the  suffering  and  ill-health  of  the 
poor  on  account  of  the  cramped  quarters,  bad  air  and 
want  of  sunlight  and  pure  water,  and  he  secured  the 
passage  of  the  Tenement  House  Reform  Law  with  a 
Tenement  House  Commission  to  see  that  it  was  prop 
erly  enforced.  He  felt  that  there  were  abuses  in  the 
insurance  department  which  needed  correcting  and 
that  Lou  Payne,  a  ' ' dyed-in-the-wool' '  friend  of  Sen 
ator  Platt,  was  a  barrier  to  the  reform,  and  at  the 
risk  of  irritation  and  criticism  he  removed  Mr.  Payne 
and  brought  a  healthful  change  in  the  Insurance  De 
partment. 

With  a  heart  always  going  out  after  the  poor,  and 
with  a  desire  to  help  those  of  them  who  were  not 
given  a  fair  chance,  the  Governor  set  himself  in  ear 
nest  to  improve  the  condition  of  the  laboring  class  of 


138  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

the  State.  He  secured  an  eight-hour  law;  strict  fac 
tory  laws,  including  the  employers'  liability,  the  pro 
tection  of  women  and  children  in  the  industrial  world ; 
a  cure  for  the  worst  evils  of  the  sweatshop,  and  other 
helpful  measures.  He  secured  the  building  of  a  State 
hospital  for  the  cure  of  consumptives  in  the  first  stage 
of  this  disease. 

Perhaps  the  most  conspicuous  and  far-reaching 
measure,  which  he  pressed  under  tremendous  opposi 
tion,  was  the  Corporation  Franchise  Tax  Law.  He 
insisted  that  these  mammoth  corporations,  which  re 
ceived  such  a  generous  franchise,  should  be  made  to 
pay  their  full  share  of  the  burden  of  the  State.  Some 
of  the  foremost  Republicans  of  the  State  took  issue 
with  him  on  this  subject  and  fought  the  measure  bit 
terly.  In  answer  to  them  he  said,  "It  seems  to  me 
that  our  attitude  should  be  one  of  correcting  the  evils 
and  thereby  showing  that,  whereas  the  Populists  and 
Socialists,  and  others,  do  not  really  correct  the  evils 
at  all,  or  else  only  do  so  at  the  expense  of  producing 
others  in  aggravated  form;  on  the  contrary,  we  Re 
publicans  hold  a  just  balance  and  set  ourselves  as  reso 
lutely  against  improper  corporate  influence  on  the 
one  hand  as  against  demagogy  and  mob  rule  on  the 
other.'' 

The  friends  of  moral  reform  in  New  York  had  in 
troduced  a  bill  against  professional  boxing  with  a  fee 
at  the  door.  I  had  remembered  how,  as  a  sickly  boy, 
those  of  his  size  had  licked  and  bullied  Theodore  and 
how  his  father  had  engaged  a  trainer  to  instruct  him 
in  boxing,  and  how  much  physical  benefit  and  courage 
he  derived  and  how  much  genuine  joy  he  got  out  of 
that  severe  form  of  athletics.  And  hence  I  knew  that 
the  bill  for  innocent  boxing,  in  itself,  would  not  be 
objectionable  to  him,  but  I  knew  also  that  he  had  a 


GOVERNOR  OF  NEW  YORK  139 

keen  conscience  that  scented  moral  danger  and  that 
he  would  not  allow  any  bill  to  go  through  which  had 
anything  wrong  about  it.  The  telegrams  from  the 
Capitol  in  the  city  papers  reported  that  the  anti-prize 
fighting  bill  had  been  halted  and  that  it  was  going  to 
be  defeated,  that  Governor  Roosevelt,  who  was  con 
stitutionally  friendly  to  boxing,  was  not  going  to 
press  it  and  was  going  to  permit  it  to  be  defeated. 
Two  or  three  papers  had  editorials  commending  such 
a  course  on  his  part.  I  was  considerably  excited  when 
I  entered  the  Governor 's  chamber  after  a  hurried  trip 
to  Albany,  and  it  may  have  been  with  a  little  feeling 
that  I  told  him  what  I  had  seen  in  the  papers  and 
reminded  him  of  the  promise  he  made  us  that  the 
bill  should  go  through.  "  There  is  no  man  on  earth 
whose  word  I  would  rather  trust  than  yours, ' '  I  said, 
"or  on  whose  conscience  I  would  rather  rely  on  a 
question  of  public  morals,  and  I  know  that  you  are 
misrepresented  in  the  papers  and  editorials.  I  have 
come  up  to  Albany  more  than  anything  else  to  ask 
you  to  give  this  bill  the  boost  that  will  send  it  over 
the  top. " 

He  got  much  more  excited  than  I  was  myself  and 
said, ' '  I  am  astonished  that  you  should  take  those  false 
telegrams,  those  lying  editorials,  and  be  disturbed 
about  them,  when  I  told  you  that,  friendly  as  I  was 
to  boxing  as  an  athletic  exercise,  I  was  totally  op 
posed  to  the  vices  and  demoralizing  herds  that  cluster 
about  and  feed  upon  it,  and  that  I  would  fight  to  the 
death  any  hint  of  professional  gambling  that  might 
be  associated  with  it,"  and  then,  referring  to  one 
paper  and  the  editorial  in  it,  he  said,  "This  paper 
and  its  editorials  always  misunderstand  and  misrep 
resent  me,  and  you  wave  the  red  rag  before  the  bull 
in  referring  to  them."  He  continued:  "You  know 


140  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

full  well  that  on  moral  questions  the  church  people 
and  I  are  in  perfect  agreement.  Why?  I  am  one  of 
the  church  people  myself,  and  stand,  work,  and  fight 
for  the  things  which  they  represent.  Our  personal 
friendship  is  the  outgrowth  of  our  mutual  support 
of  the  things  for  which  the  church  stands."  He  had 
walked  over  to  the  window  and  lifted  one  foot  up  on 
the  sill,  and  he  put  around  me  an  arm  which  had  the 
strength  of  a  grizzly  bear's  paw  and  the  tenderness 
of  a  woman  pressing  her  babe  to  her  heart,  as  he 
said,  "I  am  not  angry  at  you.  I  appreciate  your  feel 
ing  and  your  interest  in  the  good  morals  of  the  State, 
and  I  am  as  anxious  about  them  as  you,  but  it  does 
make  me  fighting  mad  to  be  lied  about  this  way  and 
made  to  appear  on  the  wrong  side  of  this  moral  ques 
tion." 

While  Governor  Roosevelt  was  pushing  this  con 
structive  legislation  he  was  endearing  himself  to  the 
people,  irrespective  of  party,  and  with  his  positive 
genius  for  politics  was  taking  a  very  strong  grip  on 
the  leadership  of  his  own  party  in  the  State.  His 
broad-minded,  statesmanlike  reform  administration  as 
Governor  brought  wider  attention  and  regard  for  him 
in  the  country  at  large  and  made  him  a  presidential 
possibility. 


THE  CITIZEN  AND  PUBLIC  MAN 


CHAPTER  X 
THE  CITIZEN  AND  THE  PUBLIC  MAN 

WHILE  I  was  pastor  at  the  Trinity  Methodist 
Church  at  Newburgh,  N.  Y.,  I  asked  Gover 
nor  Roosevelt  if  he  would  come  and  give  us 
a  lecture  in  our  church.  He  said  he  had  so  many  calls 
for  public  service  that  he  could  not  accept  one  out  of  a 
hundred,  and  that  if  he  were  to  accept  such  a  request 
as  I  was  making  of  him  he  could  speak  three  times  a 
day  every  day  in  the  year.  But  he  said :  '  *  As  you  and 
I  are  such  special  friends  I  will  make  an  exception  in 
your  case  and  come  to  you.  Occasionally  I  make  a 
special  exception,  but  it  is  exceedingly  rare."  We 
had  the  church  crowded  with  an  audience  that  num 
bered  a  thousand.  In  introducing  him  I  said:  "We 
are  honored  to-night  with  the  presence  and  service  of 
Governor  Roosevelt;  he  is  a  brave  soldier,  a  wise 
statesman,  a  fearless  reformer,  a  manly  man,  the  ideal 
American  and  a  Christian  gentleman.  He  has  phos 
phorus  in  his  brains,  iron  in  his  blood,  lime  in  his 
bones  and  back-bone  enough  for  one  hundred  men." 
Just  then  I  heard  the  Governor  laugh  aloud  and  I 
turned  my  face  towards  him  and  as  his  eye  both 
twinkled  and  snapped  he  said:  "I  am  likely  to  have 
need  of  all  that  back-bone  before  I  get  through  with 
my  job." 

143 


144  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

Governor  Roosevelt  then  delivered  his  speech  on 
THE  CITIZEN  AND  THE  PUBLIC  MAN 

His  address  was  as  follows : 

Good  citizenship  does  not  necessarily  imply  genius.  Genius 
has.been  defined  as  an  infinite  capacity  for  taking  pains,  and 
good  citizenship  consists  in  the  practice  of  ordinary,  hum 
drum,  common  virtues,  which  we  all  take  for  granted,  and 
which,  in  practice,  sad  to  say,  all  of  us  do  not  carry  out. 

Jefferson  said  that  the  whole  art  of  government  consists 
in  being  honest.  That  is  not  the  whole  art,  but  it  is  the 
foundation  of  all  government.  The  foundation  is  not 
enough ;  but,  if  you  do  not  have  that,  you  cannot  erect  upon 
it  any  superstructure  that  is  worth  building.  You  must 
have  honesty  as  the  first  requisite  of  good  citizenship.  We 
have  too  much  of  a  tendency  in  this  country  to  deify  mere 
smartness,  mere  intellectual  acumen,  unaccompanied  by 
morality.  There  is  no  attitude  that  speaks  worse  for  a  com 
monwealth  than  this  of  admiring,  or  failing  to  condemn,  the 
man  who  is  unconscientious,  unscrupulous,  and  immoral,  but 
who  succeeds.  If  a  man  has  not  the  root  of  honesty  in  him 
— has  not,  at  the  foundation  of  his  character,  righteousness 
and  decency — then,  the  abler  and  the  braver  he  is,  the  more 
dangerous  he  is.  It  is  an  additional  shame  to  a  man  that 
he  should  be  evil,  when  he  has  in  him  the  power  to  do 
much  good. 

In  all  our  history,  who  is  the  man  first  thought  of  when 
Americans  wish  to  name  the  arch  type  of  evil?  Benedict 
Arnold,  the  traitor,  who  had  not  the  root  of  honesty  in 
him.  And  yet  he  was  one  of  the  most  brilliant  soldiers  that 
ever  wore  the  American  uniform.  Had  he  ended  as  he  be 
gan,  he  would  have  been  an  example  to  all  Americans.  How 
would  our  nation  look  if  we  failed  to  condemn  Arnold  as 
his  crime  deserved? — if  we  said:  "Arnold,  a  traitor?  Oh, 
yes,  but  then  he  was  a  dreadfully  smart  man."  There  is  no 
danger  of  anybody  else  becoming  an  Arnold.  He  is  con 
demned,  and  nobody  desires  to  follow  in  his  footsteps.  But 
there  is  a  danger  to  us,  as  a  nation,  in  the  career  of  the 
Benedict  Arnolds  of  the  political  and  financial  worlds;  of 
the  men  who  prosper  in  business  or  in  politics  by  wrong 
doing,  and  who  find  weak-minded  apologists,  who  say  for 
them :  "Oh,  well !  maybe  he  has  been  a  little  tricky,  but  he 
has  succeeded."  Shame  to  any  man  who  permits  his  ad- 


©    g 


THE  CITIZEN  145 

miration  for  success  to  lead  him  into  condoning  crime  when 
that  crime  has  led  to  success!  Shame  to  those  men  who 
permit  admiration  for  wealth  and  political  position  to  make 
them  condone  the  evil-doing  through  which  wealth  or  posi 
tion  was  attained.  We  are  in  no  danger  from  the  Bene 
dict  Arnolds;  that  danger  is  past;  but  a  hundred  others 
remain.  We  are  in  danger  from  the  man  who  tries  to  rise 
to  political  prominence  as  a  demagogue  by  inflaming  class 
against  class,  or  section  against  section.  We  are  in  danger 
from  the  man  who  tries  to  rise  to  political  power  by  truck 
ling  either  to  the  wealthy  man  who  seeks  to  take  corrupt 
advantage  of  his  wealth,  or  to  the  man  without  wealth  who 
is  moved  by  malice,  envy,  and  hatred,  to  conspire  against 
the  man  who  is  thriftier  or  more  progressive  than  he.  It  is 
necessary  to  condemn  the  two  types  alike.  We  are  in  danger 
from  the  men  who  rise  in  business  through  swindling, 
whether  on  a  big  or  small  scale,  and  the  reason  we  are  in 
danger  is  because  public  opinion  is  not  awake  enough — en 
lightened  enough — to  make  the  crushing  weight  of  its  con 
demnation  felt  against  the  men  who  prosper  in  these  ways. 

After  honesty  as  the  foundation  of  the  citizenship  that 
counts,  in  business  or  in  politics,  must  come  courage.  You 
must  have  courage  not  only  in  battle,  but  also  in  civic 
life.  We  need  physical  and  we  need  moral  courage.  Neither 
is  enough  by  itself.  You  need  moral  courage.  Many  a  man 
has  been  brave  physically  who  has  flinched  morally.  You 
must  feel  in  you  a  very  fiery  wrath  against  evil.  When 
you  see  a  wrong,  instead  of  feeling  shocked  and  hurt  and  a 
desire  to  go  home,  and  a  wish  that  right  prevailed,  you 
should  go  out  and  fight  until  that  wrong  is  overcome.  You 
must  feel  ashamed  if  you  do  not  stand  up  for  the  right  as 
you  see  it;  ashamed  if  you  lead  a  soft  and  easy  life  and 
fail  to  do  your  duty.  You  must  have  courage.  If  you  do 
not,  the  honesty  is  of  no  avail. 

But  honesty  and  courage,  while  indispensable,  are  not 
enough  for  good  citizenship.  I  do  not  care  how  brave  and 
honest  a  man  is;  if  he  is  a  fool,  he  is  not  worth  knocking 
on  the  head.  In  addition  to  courage  and  honesty,  you  must 
have  the  saving  quality  of  common  sense.  One  hundred  and 
ten  years  ago  France  started  to  form  a  republic,  and  one 
of  her  noted  men — an  exceedingly  brilliant  man,  a  scholar 
of  exceptional  thought,  the  Abbe  Sieyes — undertook  to  draw 
np  a  constitution.  He  drew  up  several  constitutions,  beauti- 


146  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

ful  documents;  but  they  would  not  work.  The  French  na 
tional  convention  resolved  in  favor  of  liberty;  and,  in 
the  name  of  liberty,  they  beheaded  every  man  who  did 
not  think  as  they  did.  They  resolved  in  favor  of  fraternity, 
and  beheaded  those  who  objected  to  such  a,  brotherhood. 
They  resolved  in  favor  of  equality,  and  cut  off  the  heads  of 
those  who  rose  above  the  general  level.  They  indulged  in 
such  hideous  butcheries,  in  the  name  of  liberty,  equality, 
and  fraternity,  as  to  make  tyranny  seem  mild  in  comparison 
— and  all  because  they  lacked  common  sense  as  well  as 
morality. 

Two  or  three  years  before  that,  we,  in  America,  had  a 
body  of  men  gathered  in  a  constitutional  convention  to  make 
a  constitution.  They  assembled  under  the  lead  of  Wash 
ington,  with  Alexander  Hamilton,  Madison,  and  many  other 
prominent  men.  They  did  not  draw  up  a  constitution  in  a 
week,  as  the  brilliant  Sieyes  did,  but  just  one  constitution, 
and  that  one  worked.  That  was  the  great  point! 

It  worked,  primarily,  because  it  was  drawn  up  by  practi 
cal  politicians — by  practical  politicians  who  believed  in  de 
cency,  as  well  as  in  common  sense.  If  they  had  been  a  set 
of  excellent  theorists,  they  would  have  drawn  up  a  consti 
tution  which  would  have  commended  itself  to  other  excel 
lent  theorists,  but  which  would  not  have  worked.  If  they 
had  been  base,  corrupt  men,  mere  opportunists,  men  who 
lacked  elevating  ideals,  dishonest,  cowardly,  they  would  not 
have  drawn  up  a  document  that  would  have  worked  at  all. 
On  the  great  scale  the  only  practical  politics  is  honest 
politics.  The  makers  of  our  constitution  were  practical  poli 
ticians,  who  were  also  sincere  reformers,  and  as  brave  and 
upright  as  they  were  sensible. 

Take  Washington,  for  example.  He  was  not  a  mere  the* 
orist — not  a  bit  of  it.  He  had  served,  before  the  war  broke 
out,  in  the  Virginia  Legislature,  again  and  again.  There  he 
acquired  the  experience  that  every  man  must  have  in  a 
Legislature,  if  he  tries  to  accomplish  anything.  He  found, 
when  he  was  with  a  lot  of  men  actuated  by  different  mo 
tives,  that  he  could  not  have  his  way  altogether;  that  he 
had  to  get  the  best  result  he  could  out  of  the  materials  at 
hand.  Alexander  Hamilton  had  taken  a  prominent  part  in 
the  politics  of  New  York.  So  had  Madison,  the  Adamses, 
and  Patrick  Henry,  in  their  commonwealths.  These  men 
were  all  men  of  theories ;  but  they  were  not  mere  theorists. 


THE  CITIZEN  147 

They  had  worked  in  popular  bodies,  had  seen  what  rep 
resentative  governments  and  legislatures  could  and  could 
not  do,  what  the  people  would  and  would  not  stand,  just 
how  far  they  could  lead  them,  just  how  far  they  could 
drive  them.  They  knew  they  could  not  get  all  they  wanted, 
but  they  knew  they  could  get  a  good  deal.  They  were  not 
fools ;  and,  therefore,  they  did  not  insist  upon  the  impracti 
cable  best.  If  they  had  been  either  fools  or  knaves,  they 
would  have  done  irreparable  damage  to  the  country — just 
as  much  if  they  had  been  one  as  the  other.  The  fool  and 
the  knave  play  into  each  other's  hands.  They  do  not  think 
they  do,  but  they  do.  If  the  men  of  whom  I  speak  had 
insisted  upon  the  impossible,  on  what  they  could  not  get, 
we  would  not  have  any  constitution.  If  they  had  not  in 
sisted  upon  the  best  they  could  get,  their  work  would  not 
have  been  worth  doing  at  all.  In  other  words,  they  had 
to  work  as  Washington  and  Lincoln  always  did  work. 

For  instance,  there  were,  in  that  constitutional  conven 
tion,  men  who  were  almost  as  wide-awake  as  we  of  to-day, 
on  the  evils  of  negro  slavery;  but  they  lived  in  a  genera 
tion  when  not  one  man  in  a  thousand  felt  as  they  did,  and 
they  had  to  consent  not  merely  to  the  recognition  of  human 
slavery,  but  to  give  increased  representation  to  the  slave 
states  for  the  negro  slaves  they  contained  within  their 
borders.  It  was  indefensible  from  the  standpoint  of  logic, 
and,  later,  the  constitution  was  denounced  as  "a  league  with 
death  and  a  covenant  with  hell,"  because  of  its  containing 
such  a  provision.  We,  of  our  day,  would  be  criminal,  if 
we  put  in  such  a  provision.  But  our  forefathers,  working 
under  the  actual  conditions,  had  to  accept  the  provision, 
or  they  could  not  have  obtained  the  Union — this  free  re 
public.  They  would  have  begun  exactly  such  a  career  as 
we  have  seen  the  republics  of  South  America  follow  dur 
ing  the  eighty  years  that  have  elapsed  since  they  threw  off 
the  yoke  of  Spain. 

But  our  leaders  were  not  merely  "practical"  men,  either. 
They  were  accustomed  to  the  conduct  of  affairs,  but  they 
were  also  men  of  the  study,  of  the  library,  men  who  could 
draw  on  their  knowledge  of  what  had  been  done  in  other 
nations,  in  other  ages.  They  not  only  drew  from  their  ex 
perience  for  actual  government,  but  from  their  wealth  of 
knowledge  of  past  history.  They  did  not  belong  to  the 
narrow-minded  type,  which  says,  "Oh,  I  am  practical,"  as  an 


148  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

excuse  for  being  illiterate  and  base.  Distrust  any  man  who 
advances  the  excuse  of  being  practical  when  he  is  convicted 
of  some  infamy,  or  is  shown  to  have  been  utterly  ignorant 
of  history. 

To  be  practical,  if  you  use  the  word  in  its  proper  and 
highest  sense,  necessarily  implies  that  the  man  shall  have 
a  knowledge  of  history  as  well  as  of  current  practice ;  above 
all  else,  should  thoroughly  understand  that  to  be  practical 
does  not  Imply  being  base.  In  the  long  run,  being  practical 
implies  being  decent ;  and,  if  it  does  not  imply  that,  then 
drop  it. 

It  does  no  good  to  resolve  against  vice  in  the  abstract 
All  the  good  comes  from  acting,  in  the  concrete,  in  a  way 
that  carries  out  in  practice  the  principles  laid  down  in  the 
abstract.  There  should  be  an  eleventh  commandment: 
"Thou  shalt  tell  the  truth,  and  thou  shalt  tell  it  just  as 
much  on  the  stump  as  in  the  pulpit."  Do  not  fail  to  per 
form  whatever  you  have  promised.  On  the  other  hand,  do 
not,  through  weakness,  folly,  or  wickedness,  promise,  or 
ask  to  have  promised,  what  you  know  cannot  be  performed. 
When  a  man  runs  for  office,  if  you  ask  him  to  promise  what 
you  know  cannot  be  done,  you  are  asking  him  to  lie.  You 
are  taking  a  position  that  is  infamous  for  yourself,  be 
cause  you  are  asking  him  to  take  an  infamous  position.  On 
the  other  hand,  if  you  ask  him,  as  you  have  a  right  to  ask 
him,  to  do  what  can  be  performed,  and  he  fails  to  redeem 
his  promise,  hold  him  to  the  strictest  accountability.  If  he 
promises  you  the  millennium,  distrust  him.  If  he  tells  you 
that,  providing  you  vote  for  his  particular  patent  remedy, 
he  will  cure  all  diseases  of  the  body  politic,  and  will  see 
that  everybody  is  happy,  rich,  and  prosperous,  not  only  dis 
trust  him,  but  also  set  yourselves  down  as  fools  if  you 
follow  him. 

We  have  lived  one  thousand  and  nine  hundred  years  in 
the  Christian  era,  and  as  yet  we  have  had  to  make  our 
progress  step  by  step,  with  infinite  pains  and  infinite  labor. 
In  spite  of  haltings  and  shortcomings,  we  have  been  striv 
ing  onward  and  upward;  and,  as  we  have  made  progress 
in  the  past,  so  we  shall  make  it  in  the  future.  You  will 
not  find  any  royal  road  in  patent  legislation,  in  curious 
schemes  by  which  everybody  gets  virtuous  and  happy.  Not 
a  bit  of  it !  We  are*  going  ahead,  I  trust,  a  little  faster 
than  in  the  past,  but  only  a  little  faster.  We  hope  to  keep 


THE  CITIZEN  149 

going  forward,  but  by  steps,  not  by  bounds.  We  must  keep 
our  eyes  on  the  stars,  but  we  must  also  remember  that  our 
feet  are  on  the  ground.  When  you  get  a  man  who  tries 
to  make  you  think  anything  else,  he  is  either  a  visionary  or 
a  demagogue,  and  in  either  event  he  is  an  unsafe  leader. 

The  citizen  who  does  his  whole  duty  will  be  careful  not 
to,  attribute  wrongfully,  dishonest  or  bad  motives  to  a  pub 
lic  servant.  This  is  as  reprehensible  as  to  fail  to  condemn 
the  actually  blameworthy.  In  either  case  you  tend  to  con 
fuse  the  public  conscience,  to  debauch  the  public  morality, 
to  make  the  rogue  strive  and  prosper  and  drive  the  honest 
man  from  public  life.  It  is  of  vital  consequence  that  our 
public  servants  be  honest ;  it  is  of  no  less  vital  consequence 
to  the  welfare  of  the  nation  that  the  real  truth  should  be 
told  about  the  dishonest  and  honest  alike;  and  woe  to  the 
man  who  offends  in  either  respect. 

Finally,  remember  to  stand  for  both  the  ideal  and  the 
practical.  Remember  that  you  must  have  a  lofty  ideal,  as 
Abraham  Lincoln  had,  and  that  you  must  try  to  achieve 
it  in  practical  ways  as  he  tried  to  achieve  it  during  the  four 
years  that  he  lived  and  worked  and  suffered  for  the  people, 
until  his  sad,  patient,  kindly  soul  was  sent  to  seek  its 
Master.  Remember,  also,  that  you  can  do  your  duty  as  citi 
zens  in  this  country  only  if  you  are  imbued  through  and 
through  with  the  spirit  of  brotherhood ;  the  spirit  that  we 
call  Americanism.  You  can  do  no  permanent  good  unless 
you  feel,  not  only  in  theory,  but  also  in  practice,  that  funda 
mentally  we  are  knit  together  by  close  ties, — the  ties  of 
morality,  of  fellow  feeling  and  sympathy,  in  its  broadest 
and  deepest  sense.  We  cannot  live  permanently  as  a  re 
public  ;  we  cannot  hold  our  own  as  the  mightiest  common 
wealth  of  self-governing,  free  men  upon  which  the  sun  has 
ever  shown  unless  we  have  it  ground  into  our  souls  that 
we  know  no  class,  no  section;  that  east,  west,  north,  and 
south,  our  people,  whatever  may  be  their  occupations,  what 
ever  their  conditions  in  life,  stand  shoulder  by  shoulder, 
striving  for  honesty,  for  decency,  for  all  the  fundamental 
virtues  and  morals  that  make  good  American  citizenship. 


This  address  was  afterwards  published  in  Dr.  Maiden's  Success  Mag- 
asine  and  in  his  "Success  Library.'* 


THE  VICE-PKESIDENCT 


CHAPTER  XI 
THE  VICE-PRESIDENCY 

IT  was  Governor's  Day  at  the  Orange  County  Fair 
at  Middletown,  New  York,  that  I  had  a  memor 
able  visit  with  Theodore  Roosevelt.  How  my 
bosom  heaved  with  pride  as  I  rode  in  a  "royal  char 
iot  "  in  a  parade  through  the  streets  of  the  little  city, 
behind  the  village  band.  Constituted  as  I  am,  caring 
so  little  for  "fuss  and  feathers/'  I  felt  that  the  whole 
performance,  as  far  as  my  relation  to  it  was  con 
cerned,  was  a  joke,  but  I  felt  that  the  little  parade 
was  not  a  joke  by  any  means,  for  I  considered  that 
the  greatest  man  in  America  was  at  the  head  of  the 
line,  and  that  he  would  stir  the  farmers  of  the  singu 
larly  rich  county  into  the  highest  enthusiasm  and 
helpful  endeavor,  and  that  I,  myself,  would  be  en 
riched  with  his  wisdom  and  ref reshed^  by  his  compan 
ionship.  When  we  got  to  the  speaker's  stand  at  the 
Fair,  thousands  upon  thousands  had  gathered  around 
and  pressed  close  against  the  stand  to  see  and  hear 
the  Governor.  He  said  to  me,  ' '  Come  along  here,  old 
boy,  and  sit  with  me  on  the  speakers'  stand.  You 
have  always  backed  me  up,  and  I  want  you  to  stand 
behind  me  to-day." 

153 


154:  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

It  was  a  great  speech  he  made.  Everything  he  said 
and  did  I  thought  was  great.  But  he  was  intrin 
sically  great,  and  the  people  of  our  country  and  the 
world  recognized  that  he  said  and  did  the  greatest 
things  possible  to  mortals.  Their  love  magnified  him 
almost  into  the  superhuman.  One  of  the  things  I  re 
member  most  distinctly  about  the  speech  was  the 
humor  that  filled  his  soul  so  full  that  it  ran  over  in 
comical  facial  expressions  and  in  funny  incident, 
which  was  one  of  his  chief  personal  charms  and  which 
delighted  his  audiences-.  It  was  a  country  lunch  we 
had  on  the  ground,  and  it  was  great,  as  it  should  have 
been  on  Governor's  Day  and  after  such  a  speech.  I 
had  another  heave  of  pride  in  my  bosom  when  they 
placed  me  next  to  the  Governor  to  eat.  While  he  did 
his  full  job  as  a  working  man  at  that  meal,  he  would 
take  time  to  throw  out  a  chunk  of  wisdom,  now  and 
then,  or  to  start  a  hearty  laugh.  The  little  circle  was 
charged  with  his  magnetism.  Everybody  on  the 
ground  felt  the  same  delightful  thrill  of  his  person 
ality.  When  the  lunch  was  over  he  said  to  me,  "I 
asked  you  to  come  out  to  Middletown  to-day  because 
I  have  something  of  great  importance  I  want  to  take 
up  with  you.  I  do  not  care  to  say  what  I  desire  here 
in  public,  nor  even  to  this  inner  circle  of  my  good 
friends,  and  I  want  you  to  take  a  walk  with  me  so 
that  I  can  say  what  I  desire  without  anybody  hearing 
me."  He  said,  " There  is  a  lonely  place  down  there 
in  those  woods,  and  we  will  go  there. ' ' 

When  we  came  to  the  woods  he  said,  * '  Sit  down  here 
on  the  ground. ' '  He  said  to  me  seriously,  l '  Hobart  is 
going  to  die.  He  has  an  incurable  disease  and  can 
not  live  long,  and  cannot  be  renominated  for  the  vice- 
presidency.  The  leaders,  who  will  name  the  candi 
dates  to  succeed  him,  have  just  been  to  me  to  offer 


THE   VICE-PRESIDENCY  155 

me  the  place  and  insisted  upon  my  taking  it.  I  want 
to  know  what  you  think  about  it ;  what  would  you  do 
if  you  were  in  my  place  ?  You  and  I  have  had  cabinet 
meetings  at  Police  Headquarters,  at  the  Capitol  at 
Albany  and  elsewhere,  and  we  will  have  one  here. ' ' 

"My  answer  to  your  question,"  I  said,  "will  de 
pend  upon  how  you  feel  about  it,  because  your  in. 
stincts  are  so  strong  and  your  prophetic  vision  is  so 
keen  and  wide  that  I  would  rather  trust  your  judg 
ment  than  my  own,  and  I  would  say,  do  what  you 
think  is  the  best  thing  to  do  and  the  thing  you  want 
to  do  most. ' '  He  replied,  ' '  I  am  not  going  to  tell  you 
how  I  feel  about  it.  I  have  brought  you  here  to  get 
your  judgment,  and  when  you  have  given  me  yours 
I  will  then  tell  you  what  I  think  about  it. ' '  "  Gover 
nor/'  I  said  to  him,  "this  is  a  matter  of  tremendous 
importance.  I  feel  honored  at  your  confidence,  and 
will  take  this  matter  under  serious  consideration,  sleep 
on  it  overnight  and  let  you  know  in  the  morning." 

"No,"  he  said,  "I  don't  want  you  to  take  it  under 
consideration  and  let  me  know  to-morrow.  I  do  not 
want  you  to  take  an  hour,  nor  five  minutes,  nor  one 
minute,  so  just  bang  away  and  say  what  you  think 
now.  What  I  want  is  your  first  impression  on  the 
subject.  Your  intuitions  are  stronger  than  your  logic 
as  they  are  in  most  men. 

"Here  goes,"  I  replied.  "The  vice-presidency  is 
a  temple  or  a  tomb;  in  the  latter  years  of  our  re 
public  it  has  been  a  tomb;  in  the  earlier  history  of 
our  country  it  was  a  temple.  The  best  man  was  made 
President,  the  next  best  man  Vice-president,  with  the 
understanding  that,  at  the  expiration  of  the  term  of 
the  presidency,  he  would  be  nominated  as  the  succes 
sor.  But  you  are  not  an  ordinary  man.  Unlike  any 
other  one  in  the  country,  you  are  so  potential  and  so 


156  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

magnetic  that  I  believe  if  you  were  made  Vice-presi 
dent  the  people  would  return  to  the  custom  of  the 
fathers  and  nominate  you  for  President  as  McKin- 
ley's  successor. 

"Governor,  I  do  not  think  that  any  rope  was  ever 
made  strong  enough  to  tie  your  legs,  or  buckle  ever 
made  strong  enough  to  strap  a  muzzle  over  your 
mouth.  You  would  be  put,  as  Vice-president,  to  pre 
side  over  the  Senate,  with  the  understanding  that  you 
would  be  a  wooden  man  or  a  rubber  stamp.  But  it 
would  be  found  that  the  leaders  would  have  to  come 
to  your  mind  for  wisdom  and  seek  your  dynamic  force 
to  run  the  wheels  of  government  successfully,  and  in 
a  perfectly  natural  way  we  would  return  to  the  cus 
tom  of  our  fathers  and  make  you  McKinley's  suc 
cessor. 

"Besides,  as  Vice-president,  you  would  have  one 
chance  out  of  six  to  be  President;  sixteen  per  cent, 
of  all  the  Presidents  of  the  United  States  have  been 
so,  by  the  death  of  the  President  and  the  accession 
of  the  Vice-president  to  his  office.  You  would  not 
want  to  become  President  that  way?  I  know  you  so 
well,  and  yet  you  would  be  all  the  same.  I  was  down 
to  Washington  the  other  day  and  saw  McKinley  and 
he  looked  so  pale  and  haggard  that  he  shocked  me. 
His  wife,  you  know,  is  an  incurable  invalid,  and  his 
intense  affection  for  her  has  made  her  failing  health 
a  matter  of  great  concern  to  him;  and  his  mother, 
to  whom  he  is  so  devoted,  has  been  very  sick,  and 
that  has  borne  upon  him. 

' l  The  Spanish  War  racked  and  jaded  him.  A  blood 
vessel  might  break  in  the  back  of  his  head  and  he  be 
gone  in  the  twinkling  of  an  eye  and  you  would  be 
his  successor.  Besides,  some  rascally  anarchist  might 
kill  him;  you  would  not  want  the  Presidency  under 


THE  VICE-PRESIDENCY  157 

those  circumstances.  You  would  risk  your  own  life 
to  fight,  and  even  kill,  a  man  that  would  attempt  to 
touch  a  hair  of  McKinley's  head.  Knowing  your 
ideas  of  heroism,  you  would  count  it  a  trial  to  take  the 
chief  office  under  those  circumstances,  and  yet  you 
would  have  to  do  it.  Remember,  Governor,  if  you  ac 
cept  this  nomination  for  the  Vice-presidency,  you  have 
one  chance  in  six  to  be  President. 

' '  On  the  other  hand,  though  fit  for  anything  in  the 
nation,  you  are  not  around  begging  for  a  job.  You 
have  an  office  of  great  honor  and  responsibility  and 
opportunity  as  Governor  of  the  Empire  State.  You 
are  the  ruler  of  twelve  millions  of  people,  more  than 
a  number  of  ambitious  sovereigns  in  Europe  have  as 
subjects.  You  have  an  unlimited  field  of  usefulness 
in  the  Governorship,  and  I  know  that  in  your  heart 
of  hearts  you  live  to  do  duty  and  not  seek  position 
or  fame.  While  I  believe  the  chances  would  be  even 
if  you  were  nominated  for  the  Vice-presidency  that 
you  would  reach  the  Presidency,  I  believe  if  I  were 
in  your  place  I  would  stay  in  my  present  office  and 
decline  the  nomination  offered.  I  believe  the  distance 
between  Albany  and  the  White  House  is  shorter  than 
that  between  the  Capitol,  with  its  Senate  chamber, 
and  the  White  House ;  that  the  path  from  the  Gover 
norship  to  the  Presidency  is  shorter  and  easier  than 
from  the  Vice-presidency. " 

He  said  excitedly,  ''Right  you  are,"  and,  jumping 
up,  he  gave  me  a  hard  slap  on  the  shoulder  and  said, 
11  Exactly  right  you  are.  I  agree  with  you.  I  intend 
to  stay  where  I  am.  I  will  not  touch  the  Vice-presi 
dency  with  a  ten-foot  pole.  It  is  not  my  business  to 
hunt  for  the  Presidency,  but  to  do  my  duty  to  my 
State  and  country  as  it  is  made  plain  to  me.  If  the 
people  of  this  country  ever  desire  to  elect  me  as  head 


158  THEODORE    ROOSEVELT 

of  the  nation,  of  course  I  will  feel  honored  and  ac 
cept  the  position,  but  I  shall  not  now  entertain  any 
plans  of  working  my  way  toward  such  an  exalted  of 
fice  by  any  political  schemes/' 

That  was  in  the  fall  of  1899.  Governor  Roosevelt 
persistently  declared  his  desire  for  another  term  as 
Governor  and  that,  despite  any  factional  opposition  ta 
him,  he  would  secure  the  nomination  and  succeed  him 
self.  In  the  following  summer,  in  1900,  the  National 
Convention  met  in  Philadelphia  to  nominate  a  Presi 
dent  and  Vice-president.  Governor  Roosevelt  was  one 
of  the  delegates  at  large  to  that  Convention.  It  was 
the  first  Republican  National  Convention  which  he 
had  attended  as  a  delegate  for  sixteen  years.  Then 
he  went  out  from  the  Convention  in  Chicago  that 
nominated  Elaine  into  political  retirement.  Now  he 
flamed  upon  the  imagination  of  the  Philadelphia  Con 
vention  as  a  reformer,  the  illustrious  Colonel  of  the 
Rough  Riders,  the  wise  and  loved  Governor  of  the 
Empire  State,  and  the  Convention  went  wild  with  en 
thusiasm  every  time  he  appeared.  He  made  a  speech 
nominating  McKinley  for  the  Presidency.  The  dele 
gates  by  acclamation  clamored  for  his  nomination  for 
the  Vice-presidency.  He  declined,  honestly  declined, 
but  the  more  he  protested  the  more  insistent  the  Con 
vention  became.  At  last  he  consented  to  the  second 
place  on  the  ticket  with  McKinley  at  the  head,  and 
entered  upon  a  vigorous  and  efficient  campaign  for 
the  election  of  the  ticket. 

The  day  after  he  came  home  from  the  Convention 
in  Philadelphia,  that  nominated  him  on  the  ticket 
with  McKinley,  he  saw  me  crossing  Broadway  and 
23rd  Street  and,  throwing  up  his  hand,  he  beckoned 
to  me  to  come  over  to  him.  It  was  not  necessary  for 
him  to  beckon  me,  for  I  was  already  hurrying  toward 


THE   VICE-PRESIDENCY  159 

him.  As  I  came  within  about  twenty  feet  of  him,  he 
yelled  out  in  a  voice  that  could  have  been  heard  a 
quarter  of  a  block  away,  *  *  I  had  to  take  it,  old  man ! 
I  had  to  take  it!  Just  listen  to  me  a  minute  and  I 
will  tell  you  the  story  of  the  Convention.  It  was 
really  a  Roosevelt  Convention;  everything  was  cut 
and  dried  for  McKinley's  nomination,  everybody  ex 
pected  it  and  desired  it,  but  there  was  no  enthusiasm 
about  it.  All  the  enthusiasm  of  the  Convention 
seemed  to  center  around  me.  In  season  and  out  of 
season  the  boys  cheered  me.  I  protested  against  the 
nomination,  sincerely  and  vehemently,  and  when  they 
paid  no  attention  to  my  protest  and  nominated  me,  I 
repeatedly  refused  to  accept  it.  But,  Doctor,  I  had 
to  do  so.  If  I  had  not,  the  people  of  this  country 
would  never  have  given  me  another  office  worth  while, 
as  long  as  I  live.  If  I  had  refused  so  unanimous  and 
enthusiastic  a  call  of  my  countrymen  to  service,  I 
should  have  deserved  to  be  relegated  to  the  rear  for 
ever.  My  heart  was  broken  with  the  affection  and 
confidence  of  my  fellowmen,  and  when  I  came  to  be 
lieve  that  the  voice  of  the  people  was  really  the  voice 
of  God  to  me  I  accepted  the  position  with  cheerful 
ness  and  gratitude." 

He  was  inaugurated  Vice-president  on  the  4th  of 
March,  1901.  With  his  family  he  went  into  the  Adi- 
rondaks  for  the  summer.  He  was  in  the  deep  woods 
in  camp  and,  being  informed  that  President  McKin- 
ley  had  been  shot,  he  hastened  to  Buffalo,  where  he 
remained  three  days.  Learning  from  the  physicians 
that  the  President  would  likely  recover,  he  went  back 
to  his  camp  again,  and  there  was  found  by  the  mes 
senger  sent  to  carry  to  him  the  sad  news  that  Presi 
dent  McKinley  had  died  September  13th.  He  rushed 
to  Buffalo  and  was  there  sworn  into  office  as  the 
President  of  the  United  States. 


THEODORE  EOOSEVELT  AS  PEESIDENT 
BY  DE.  ALBEET  SHAW 


CHAPTER  XII 

THEODORE  ROOSEVELT  AS  PRESIDENT 
BY  DR.  ALBERT  SHAW 

[Dr.  Albert  Shaw,  on  whose  matchless  editorials  in  the 
Review  of  Reviews  I  have  fed  for  twenty-five  years,  was 
one  of  Colonel  Roosevelt's  most  intimate  friends.  The  Colo 
nel  has  talked  with  me,  times  without  number,  about  his 
appreciation  of  Dr.  Shaw  and  of  the  splendid  help  that  he 
had  always  given  him  in  his  fight  for  righteousness  in  this 
country,  and  I  asked  Dr.  Shaw  to  share  this  tribute  of 
affection  for  our  mutual  friend  by  giving  me  for  this  volume 
an  estimate  of  Theodore  Roosevelt  as  President.  He  cheer 
fully  complied  with  my  request  and  gave  me  this  ideal 
paper.] 

FOR  one  hundred  and  thirty  years  there  has  been 
in  existence  an  office  of  growing  prestige  and 
authority  in  the  world  known  as  the  American 
Presidency.  This  office  has  been  filled  by  men  of 
greatly  varying  qualities.  All  of  them  have  been 
men  of  respectable  attainments,  and  the  list  presents 
a  high  average  of  merit.  It  is  not  often,  however, 
that  in  any  country  a  statesman  comes  to  the  front 
who  seems  to  embody  in  his  own  personality  the  best 
characteristics  of  his  generation,  so  that  he  himself 
is  a  real  epitome  of  his  people  and  his  times.  Pericles, 
in  the  golden  age  of  Athens,  was  a  leader  of  this 

163 


164  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

kind.  All  that  was  best  in  the  civilization  of  Greece 
seems  to  have  been  represented  in  the  mind  and  char 
acter  of  Pericles.  Although  the  permanent  qualities 
of  Washington  and  Lincoln  have  been  generally  ad 
mitted,  there  has  never  been  agreement  as  respects 
either  of  these  great  Presidents  upon  the  question 
whether  or  not  they  were  in  a  broad  sense  the  personal 
exponents  of  the  America  of  their  respective  genera 
tions.  My  own  opinion  is  that  we  are  arriving  at 
a  better  understanding  of  the  personality  of  each  of 
these  men,  and  that  their  representative  qualities  will 
grow  more  apparent  as  the  intrinsic  points  attain  more 
emphasis  and  the  accidental  points  fall  into  their  due 
place  of  relative  unimportance. 

No  matter,  however,  what  may  be  thought  in  future 
regarding  the  broadly  representative  character  of 
Washington  or  Lincoln,  there  will  never  be  any  dispo 
sition  to  deny  the  extraordinary  extent  to  which  Theo 
dore  Roosevelt  as  President  was  the  typical  American 
of  his  generation. 

No  public  man  of  any  country  has  ever  put  himself 
so  completely  upon  record  as  Roosevelt.  There  are 
many  millions  of  living  Americans  who  have  heard 
him  speak  from  the  platform  and  who  have  distinct 
impressions  of  their  own  regarding  his  personality 
and  his  physical,  mental,  and  moral  attributes.  There 
are  also  hundreds  of  thousands  of  men  and  women 
who  had  some  personal  acquaintance  with  him,  and 
at  least  ten  thousand  people  now  living  \vho  knew 
him  quite  well.  There  are  other  thousands  who  have 
received  characteristic  letters  from  him. 

It  is  much  easier  to  write,  in  a  reminiscent  way, 
about  a  man  who  was  not  widely  known  than  about 
one  whom  everybody  has  had  ample  opportunity  to 
understand  and  appreciate.  Washington  lived  in  a 


AS   PRESIDENT  165 

period  when  facilities  were  lacking,  so  that  compara 
tively  little  was  recorded  about  any  public  man. 
There  was  no  shorthand  reporting,  typewriting  ma 
chines  were  not  known,  and  a  very  scanty  and  meagre 
kind  of  journalism  was  given  to  discussion  rather  than 
to  news.  Lincoln's  conspicuous  public  career  was 
comparatively  short,  and  the  surviving  information 
about  the  earlier  part  of  his  public  life  is  relatively 
scanty. 

Mr.  Roosevelt,  by  contrast,  lived  in  a  period  of  fully 
developed  publicity.  When  he  was  not  doing  things 
that  caused  others  to  write  about  him,  he  was  him 
self  writing  books  and  articles  that  illustrated  his 
own  mentality  and  convictions.  It  was  impossible  for 
him  to  write  extensively,  in  the  field  of  American  his 
tory  and  biography,  without  expressing  himself,  so 
that  the  reader  felt  that  he  was  learning  to  know 
the  author  as  well  as  the  subject  matter.  This  was 
true  of  his  earlier  work  on  the  "  Naval  History  of  the 
War  of  1812, "  and  his  volumes,  entitled  "The  Win 
ning  of  the  West."  The  story  of  Roosevelt,  there 
fore,  will,  when  it  is  fully  told  by  some  great  historian 
and  biographer  of  the  future,  be  a  history  of  the  de 
velopment  of  the  United  States  in  the  period  covering 
the  greater  part  of  his  life-time. 

The  youth  of  Roosevelt  illustrates  the  growth  of 
American  life  and  society,  as  typified  in  the  history 
of  his  family  and  connections  both  North  and  South. 
His  education  at  Harvard  illustrates  American  col 
lege  life  as  it  was  some  forty  years  ago.  His  intel 
lectual  interests  relate  themselves,  particularly,  to  the 
condition  of  the  country  as  it  was  in  his  boyhood. 
All  that  lay  behind  us  of  pioneer  development  was 
fascinating  to  him,  and  he  identified  himself  in  sym 
pathy,  knowledge,  and  personal  experience  with  the 


166  THEODORE    ROOSEVELT 

further  and  later  westward  movements  in  the  subdu 
ing  of  the  continent.  The  animal  life  of  the  country, 
the  forest  and  streams,  the  mountains — all  were  ar 
dently  studied  in  the  spirit  of  naturalist  and  explorer 
as  well  as  in  that  of  the  keen  student  and  observer 
of  the  processes  of  nation  building. 

From  this  eager  study  of  nature  and  of  the  coun 
try's  resources  and  growth,  Theodore  Roosevelt  gained 
an  early  reward  in  the  form  of  an  abounding  physical 
vitality  that  supported  his  prodigious  mental  activity 
throughout  his  entire  life.  This  physical  vigor,  to 
gether  with  his  efficient  industry,  was  the  dominating 
thing  in  his  career  on  the  personal  side. 

Thus  Roosevelt  brought  to  the  Presidency  great 
vigor  of  mind  and  body,  and  a  special  preparation 
which  had  consisted  of  diligent  study  of  American 
history  and  political  problems.  And  this  study,  had 
been  made  not  only  in  books,  but  also  in  a  varied  ex 
perience  which  had  made  him  an  authority  in  several 
definite  fields.  In  whatever  kind  of  effort  he  had  been 
engaged,  as  a  part  of  the  training  which  fitted  him 
for  the  supreme  test  of  the  world's  greatest  office,  he 
had  always  shown  capacity  for  seeing  the  possibilities 
of  the  thing  he  was  doing,  and  for  putting  his  great 
fund  of  vital  force  into  the  day's  work,  whatever  it 
might  be. 

During  Harrison's  administration  and  a  part  of 
Cleveland's,  he  had  served  as  Civil  Service  Commis 
sioner  at  Washington  and  had  come  to  know  thor 
oughly  the  methods  of  administration  in  the  govern 
ment  departments,  and  the  practical  aspects  of  the 
so-called  " spoils  system."  This  identification  with 
the  great  work  of  improving  government  machinery 
had  gone  far  toward  fitting  him  for  his  subsequent 
place  at  the  head  of  the  government. 


AS   PRESIDENT  167 

As  Police  Commissioner  in  New  York  he  had  shown 
himself  a  kind  of  "social  engineer/'  working  in 
tensely  to  improve  the  conditions  of  living  for  the 
masses  of  people  in  the  crowded  parts  of  the  me 
tropolis. 

As  Assistant  Secretary  of  the  Navy  and  as  Colonel 
of  the  Rough  Riders  he  had  gained  practical  expe 
rience,  so  that  he  was  especially  competent  to  deal 
with  everything  having  to  do  with  the  defenses  of 
the  country. 

Returning  from  Cuba  to  become  Governor  of  New 
York,  he  had  entered  upon  a  new  set  of  political  and 
administrative  experiences  that  contributed  in  no 
small  measure  to  his  rounded  fitness  for  the  Presi 
dency.  A  less  vital  and  capable  man  might  have  gone 
through  similar  experiences,  culminating  in  the  Gov 
ernorship  of  a  State,  without  becoming  pre-eminently 
fitted  for  the  leadership  of  the  nation  in  its  supreme 
post  of  responsibility  and  power. 

Many  men,  indeed,  of  Mr.  Roosevelt 's  own  genera 
tion  had  gone  through  varied  experiences  more  or  less 
comparable  with  his.  But  Roosevelt  possessed  the 
most  exceptional  capacity  for  the  assimilation  of  ex 
periences,  by  virtue  of  his  great  personal  endowments 
of  mental  and  physical  strength,  taken  together  with 
his  moral  qualities  of  single-heartedness,  courage  and 
public-mindedness. 

All  these  statements  that  I  have  made  are  obvious 
enough,  because  I  am  merely  assembling  points  that 
are  familiar  to  everyone  who  has  given  any  thought 
to  the  career  of  Theodore  Roosevelt.  Yet  it  is  neces 
sary  to  have  in  mind  the  physical,  mental  and  moral 
aspects  of  Roosevelt's  personality,  together  with  the 
varied  experiences  of  his  earlier  life,  in  order  to  ap 
preciate  the  man  who  became  President  in  1901  when 


168  THEODORE    ROOSEVELT 

in  his  forty-third  year — the  youngest  President  of 
the  United  States. 

The  boyishness  of  Roosevelt  was  so  conspicuous 
a  trait  that  no  one  ever  thought  of  him  as  other 
than  a  young  man  to  the  very  day  of  his  death.  He 
had  a  number  of  grandchildren,  yet  he  seemed  at 
sixty  a  young  man,  like  his  sons.  His  youthfulness 
was  not  related  to  juvenility  or  immaturity.  He  had 
left  those  qualities  behind  him  and  had  shown  rare 
manliness  while  very  young.  His  literary  work  had 
been  surprisingly  mature,  so  that  the  books  he  wrote 
in  his  twenties  held  their  own — without  apologies  for 
the  novice  hand — on  the  shelf  with  the  writings  of 
his  later  years. 

He  had  been  conspicuous  for  his  courage  in  facing 
the  most  difficult  problems  during  his  first  term  in  the 
Legislature  soon  after  he  left  college.  He  had  been 
chairman  of  the  great  New  York  State  delegation  at 
the  Republican  National  Convention  of  1884  when 
he  was  twenty-five  years  of  age.  I  followed  his  work 
in  that  convention  with  the  utmost  admiration,  and 
I  knew  him  closely  in  a  number  of  subsequent  con 
ventions,  including  the  latest  ones  that  he  attended. 
He  was  always  buoyant  and  youthful,  at  the  same 
time  that  he  was  serious  of  purpose  and  alive  to  his 
responsibilities. 

This  youthful  quality  had  much  to  do  with  the 
magnetism  of  Theodore  Roosevelt  and  the  charm 
which  was  felt  by  every  one  who  associated  with  him. 
It  was  derived  in  part  from  his  perfect  health  and 
wonderful  physical  vitality.  He  was  always  spon 
taneous  and  always  able  to  turn  rapidly  from  one 
thing  to  another.  His  spirits  were  so  high,  his  energy 
so  great,  and  his  sympathy  so  wide,  that  he  would 
have  appeared  wholly  irrepressible  but  for  the  innate 


©  Underwood  &  Underwood,  N.  Y, 
COL.   EOOSEVELT    AT   CHICKAMAUGA,    TENN. 


AS   PRESIDENT  169 

dignity  that  never  failed  him,  and  the  perfection  of 
manner  that  has  never  been  surpassed  by  any  incum 
bent  of  the  White  House. 

I  once  saw  him  come  down  the  main  stairway  to 
greet  a  distinguished  Archbishop  who  was  to  be  a 
luncheon  guest.  A  small  dog  had  arrived  that  morn 
ing  from  Oyster  Bay  and  had  not  yet  seen  the  head 
of  the  family.  The  joy  of  the  little  animal  was  so 
overwhelming  as  his  master  came  down  the  stairs 
that,  forgetting  everything,  the  President  was  on  the 
floor  with  the  dog  while  the  Archbishop  stood  at  at 
tention  eight  or  ten  feet  away.  But  Mr.  Roosevelt  was 
himself  again  as  President  in  fifteen  seconds,  and  the 
Archbishop  enjoyed  and  perfectly  understood  the  boy 
ishness  of  the  nation's  head;  for  the  Archbishop, 
though  an  old  man,  had  a  boyish  heart  and  knew  the 
President  well  as  a  man  whose  sense  of  propriety  was 
never  really  at  fault. 

I  remember  on  another  occasion  a  conversation  with 
the  most  experienced  of  the  White  House  ushers. 
This  man  had  been  attached  to  the  White  House  staff 
through  a  number  of  administrations.  He  was  wait 
ing  for  the  President  to  come  down  to  breakfast,  and 
with  a  sweeping  remark  that  was  complimentary  about 
former  incumbents  of  the  White  House,  he  went  on 
to  say: 

1 '  But  there  was  never  any  man  here  like  this  man. 
He  begins  earlier;  works  harder;  sees  more  people, 
and  puts  in  longer  hours  than  anybody  who  has  ever 
been  President.  Yet  he  is  never  tired,,  no  matter  how 
late  he  works;  and  he  always  comes  down  the  stairs 
in  the  morning  looking  as  fresh  as  the  dew  on  the 

roses !  And  he  steps  up  to  me  and  says,  '  Well,  D , 

how  is  everything  about  the  place?  If  anything  is 
going  wrong  just  let  me  know  and  we  will  have  it 


170  THEODORE    ROOSEVELT 

straightened  out  at  once.'  '  At  that  moment  the 
President  came  down  the  stairs  with  a  firm  tread, 
a  clear  eye,  and  a  radiant  smile,  justifying  everything 
that  the  admiring  usher  had  said. 

His  marvelous  executive  ability  was  due  in  great 
part  to  the  habit  he  had  formed  of  constant  industry 
and  of  perfect  concentration  of  mind.  Many  people 
can  accomplish*  a  creditable  amount  of  work  if  undis 
turbed  and  if  allowed  to  work  consecutively  at  one 
thing.  Mr.  Roosevelt  could  not  only  work  without 
being  sensitive  to  disturbances,  but  he  could  turn  rap 
idly  from  one  thing  to  another,  compass  each  fresh 
situation,  and  bring  to  bear  his  whole  power  of  de 
cision.  I  have  seen  him  for  many  hours  at  a  time 
working  at  his  desk  in  the  White  House  offices,  deal 
ing  with  a  great  number  of  matters  that  were  of 
vastly  different  degrees  of  importance.  It  need  not 
be  said  that  things  which  for  one  reason  or  another 
could  not  be  settled  were  not  rashly  disposed  of 
merely  for  the  sake  of  clearing  his  desk.  But  if  the 
case  was  in  hand,  he  did  not  hesitate.  He  was  never 
groping  in  the  valley  of  indecision.  His  was  neither 
the  parliamentary  temperament  nor  the  judicial  tem 
perament,  but  it  was  in  the  highest  sense  that  of  the 
executive.  He  could  lay  out  his  work  and  perform  it. 

A  President  who  is  not  only  willing,  but  anxious, 
to  see  people  will  not  be  left  in  solitude.  Mr.  Roose 
velt,  who  could  have  had  a  third  term  with  an  over 
whelming  endorsement  of  the  country  but  for  his 
own  firm  resistance,  did  not  step  down  to  private  life 
with  the  sense  of  relief  that  men  feel  who  are  fatigued 
and  overburdened.  He  was  able  to  say  that  he  "  liked 
his  job"  and  that  he  had  had  a  "corking  good  time.'7 
This  is  perfectly  true ;  and  it  was  due  to  a  remarkable 
power  of  adjustment  and  balance.  Mr.  Roosevelt  had 


AS   PRESIDENT  171 

been  busy,  buoyant  and  happy  in  a  number  of  pre 
vious  periods  when  doing  different  kinds  of  work. 

He  lived  in  the  White  House  what  for  him  was  a 
normal  existence.  While  public  affairs  of  great  mo 
ment  had  their  full  claim  on  his  time  and  effort  and 
were  never  neglected,  he  had  also  time  for  family  life, 
for  recreation,  for  reading  and  study,  and  for  the 
stimulus  and  pleasure  of  social  intercourse.  During 
all  these  years  in  the  White  House  there  was  probably 
no  family  in  the  United  States  that  enjoyed  a  more 
agreeable  domestic  life,  with  due  regard  for  privacy, 
with  vast  attention  to  reading  and  to  the  processes 
of  education,  and  with  constant  devotion  to  the  proper 
requirements  of  sport  and  recreation. 

Mr.  Roosevelt's  knowledge  of  books  in  many  fields 
was  unsurpassed,  while  it  may  be  suggested  that  Mrs. 
Roosevelt's  acquaintance  with  the  best  books  for  chil 
dren  and  young  people,  through  practical  experience 
in  the  domestic  circle,  was  hardly  equalled,  excepting 
perhaps  by  a  few  specialists  having  charge  of  chil 
dren's  rooms  in  our  public  libraries. 

President  Roosevelt  found  so  much  zest  in  his  daily 
exercise  that  it  ministered  undoubtedly  to  his  effi 
ciency  as  a  public  servant.  While  dealing  with  mat 
ters  of  the  utmost  delicacy  and  importance  through 
the  earlier  hours  of  the  day,  it  was  no  unusual  thing 
for  him  to  have  the  telephone  busy  in  arranging  to 
have  three  members  of  his  so-called  Tennis  Cabinet 
present  at  exactly  four  o  'clock.  His  exercise  was  usu 
ally  vigorous,  and  always  taken  in  a  systematic  way, 
leaving  him  with  ample  time  for  the  other  parts  of 
his  daily  program. 

At  a  given  hour  in  the  forenoon,  the  folding  doors 
from  his  private  office  opened  upon  a  large  company 
of  people  assembled  in  the  adjoining  Cabinet  Room. 


172  THEODORE   KOOSEVELT 

Many  of  these  were  members  of  Congress  or  officials 
from  different  States  or  cities.  There  were  people 
from  all  professions  and  walks  of  life  who  had  come 
with  credentials  which  admitted  them  to  the  waiting 
rooms.  President  Roosevelt  met  these  companies  of 
callers  with  a  graciousness  of  manner  that  put  every 
body  at  ease.  His  marvelous  memory  served  him  well 
on  such  occasions. 

Many  of  the  callers  were  people  whom  he  had  met 
casually  when  on  speaking  tours  throughout  the 
country.  Invariably  he  remembered  them,  even 
though  he  had  not  seen  them  for  many  years,  and  he 
always  gave  them  a  pleasant  feeling  by  questions 
which  showed  how  definitely  he  remembered  occasions 
and  people,  particularly  where  children  were  con 
cerned.  Many  of  these  callers  had  requests  to  make 
regarding  appointments  to  office  or  other  things  of 
an  official  kind.  Mr.  Roosevelt,  with  a  rapid  sweep 
of  the  eye,  noted  everybody  who  was  present  and 
managed  to  give  each  person  the  feeling  of  having 
received  a  nod  and  a  smile. 

Explaining  to  the  others  that  Senators  and  Repre 
sentatives  had  business  to  attend  to  on  the  Hill,  he 
gave  these  officials  the  precedence  and  enabled  them 
all  to  transact  their  business  without  a  minute  of 
undue  waiting.  After  observing  official  proprieties 
in  this  fashion,  he  gave  the  preference  to  ladies  and 
elderly  people.  In  thousands  of  instances,  of  course, 
he  was  obliged  to  say  that  the  thing  requested  could 
not  be  done ;  but  he  knew  how  to  say  it  in  such  a  way 
as  to  spare  the  feelings  of  the  visitor.  If  one  must 
say  "No,"  it  is  well  to  be  prompt  and  frank  rather 
than  to  prolong  the  suspense.  No  public  man  has 
ever  known  better  than  President  Roosevelt  how  to 
say  "no"  in  a  way  that  should  make  friends  rather 


AS   PRESIDENT  173 

than  .ill-wishers.  A  few  people  there  might  be  each 
morning  with  whom  the  President  desired  to  consult 
more  at  length.  These  were  quietly  asked  to  wait 
until  the  others  were  disposed  of,  and  then  each  one 
had  his  separate  interview. 

Almost  every  day  there  were  luncheon  guests  form 
ing  an  agreeable  group,  quite  dominated  but  always 
drawn  out  by  the  President's  wonderful  brilliancy, 
humor  and  variety  as  a  conversationalist.  At  these 
luncheon  parties  were  to  be  found  visiting  statesmen, 
soldiers,  scholars,  literary  personages,  explorers,  re 
formers,  ecclesiastics  and  notable  people  from  all  parts 
of  our  own  country  and  from  Europe,  South  America, 
Asia  and  Africa.  The  President  was  so  widely  read 
and  so  active-minded  that  he  derived  healthy  stimulus 
from  meeting  all  these  people,  and  was  the  better 
fitted  for  two  hours  more  of  afternoon  work  by  reason 
of  his  personal  contacts. 

After  his  recreation  hour,  there  intervened  an  hour 
or  two  of  reading  and  family  life  before  the  more 
formal  evening  meal,  when  very  frequently  there  were 
also  distinguished  guests.  After  nine  or  ten  o'clock 
in  the  evening,  President  Roosevelt  was  able  to  with 
draw  to  his  private  study  on  the  second  floor  of  the 
White  House,  where  for  an  hour,  or,  if  need  be  two 
or  three  hours,  he  might  work  with  stenographers 
upon  important  letters,  diplomatic  memoranda,  mes 
sages  to  Congress  or  the  drafts  of  speeches  and 
addresses  that  he  was  to  make. 

It  was  not  his  habit  to  defer  preparation  of  ad 
dresses  until  the  last  moment ;  and  still  less  did  he  be 
lieve  that  he  could  trust  to  some  kind  of  inspiration 
when  on  his  feet.  If  he  was  going  off  to  deliver  a 
series  of  speeches,  he  preferred  to  plan  the  series  defi 
nitely  in  advance,  and  he  dictated  the  essential  parts 


174  THEODORE    ROOSEVELT 

of  all  of  them  before  delivering  the  first.  He  could 
of  course  modify  them  ad  libitum  as  he  went  along, 
but  he  never  relied  upon  fluency  as  a  substitute  for 
preparation.  His  messages  to  Congress  were  stu 
diously  prepared  and  were  always  ready  well  in 
advance. 

One  reason  why  Mr.  Roosevelt  as  President  was 
able  to  see  so  many  people,  and  to  have  his  days  so 
full  of  varied  contacts,  was  the  practical  way  in 
which  he  used  his  powers  of  assimilation.  He  was 
fond  of  saying  to  some  of  his  friends  that  they  had 
never  taken  too  much  of  his  time  or  that  their  letters 
to  him  were  not  too  long,  because  he  was  making  it 
a  point  to  get  more  from  them  for  his  purposes  than 
they  were  able  to  get  from  him.  As  a  man  who  was 
reading,  for  example,  everything  that  was  worth  while 
about  travel,  exploration,  hunting  and  colonial  and 
political  conditions  in  Africa,  he  knew  how  to  sup 
plement  his  knowledge  by  eager  questioning  of  some 
returned  traveller  or,  better  still,  some  personage  iden 
tified  with  affairs  in  South  Africa,  the  Soudan,  or 
elsewhere. 

While  swift  in  decision,  President  Roosevelt  always 
sought  to  avail  himself  of  the  best  possible  advice 
before  acting.  Members  of  his  Cabinet  were  con 
sulted  fully  about  all  that  pertained  to  their  depart 
ments,  and  were  constantly  called  upon  to  aid  in  the 
formulation  of  broad  policies,  whether  domestic  or 
foreign.  What  may  be  called  the  moral  momentum 
of  the  administration  was  Mr.  Roosevelt's  own.  In 
the  expression  of  policies,  and  in  his  discussions  of 
public  affairs,  he  was  almost  invariably  aided  by  Cab 
inet  officers  and  other  trusted  advisers.  He  was  not 
resentful  of  criticism  in  points  of  detail,  but  con- 


AS   PRESIDENT  175 

stantly  availed  himself  of  the  services  of  critics  upon 
whom  he  could  rely. 

Thus  his  official  relations  were  exceedingly  frank 
and  agreeable,  and  his  administration  was  greatly 
strengthened  in  its  prestige  and  in  its  achievements  by 
the  exceptionally  good  team  work  of  the  official  per 
sonnel. 

In  the  McKinley  campaign  of  1896,  Mr.  Roosevelt 
had  taken  very  strong  ground  against  the  free  silver 
movement  and  had  been  regarded  in  the  West  and 
South  as  the  embodiment  of  the  spirit  and  attitude 
of  Wall  Street  and  the  "money  trust. "  He  was  not 
particularly  fond  of  financial  and  economic  questions 
as  such,  but  he  seized  upon  any  phases  of  them  that 
involved  principles  of  public  morality.  The  silver 
movement  to  him  was  abhorrent  because  he  thought 
it  fundamentally  dishonest.  He  was  in  some  danger 
of  misjudging  great  masses  of  his  fellow  countrymen 
at  that  time,  and  of  aspersing  their  motives. 

Later  on  he  realized  that  their  intentions  had  been 
upright,  although  their  views  upon  the  money  ques 
tion  were  erroneous.  I  had  occasion  at  that  time, 
in  what  I  believed  to  be  his  own  interest,  to  blue- 
pencil  a  manuscript  of  his  to  the  sacrifice  of  many 
of  its  most  readable  paragraphs.  He  had  written  it 
in  the  heat  and  fervor  of  the  campaign,  and  its  chal 
lenges  were  personal,  unsparing  and  very  widely  dis 
tributed.  In  after  years  he  mentioned  the  matter 
not  infrequently,  and  always  with  thanks  for  what 
he  characterized  as  the  cool  judgment  and  foresight  of 
the  editorial  revision. 

His  acceptance  of  the  verdict  at  the  moment  was 
a  remarkable  illustration  of  his  capacity  for  taking 
disinterested  advice  on  its  merits,  and  without  being 
mortally  offended.  The  manuscript  as  I  revised  it 


176  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

holds  its  place  to-day  among  his  collected  essays.  He 
had  dictated  it  hastily  at  night  after  an  evening  of 
campaign  speaking,  and  the  political  and  moral  force 
of  the  article  remained,  while  the  trenchant  assaults 
upon  individuals  and  groups  (who  afterward  became 
his  personal  friends  and  his  permanent  allies  in  poli 
tics)  were  eliminated. 

Even  in  the  making  of  those  attacks,  he  was  wholly 
free  from  ill-feeling  or  malice.  He  was  engaged  in 
a  fight,  was  confident  of  the  justice  of  his  cause,  and 
was  hitting — a  little  harder  than  he  realized — some 
opponents  whose  motives  were  good  but  whose  facts 
and  logic  were  mistaken.  Life  for  him  was  so  full 
of  wholesome  interest,  and  his  healthy  zest  for  various 
studies  and  activities  was  so  absorbing,  that  it  was 
quite  impossible  for  him  to  cherish  grudges  or  to 
cultivate  animosities. 

The  United  States  had  come  through  the  period  of 
the  Spanish  War  with  a  greatly  enlarged  place  in  the 
world.  Mr.  Roosevelt  brought  to  the  Presidential  of 
fice  the  qualities  needed  for  that  era.  His  American 
ism  was  supported  by  so  much  of  vigor,  courage  and 
frank  audacity  that  his  prestige  made  itself  felt  every 
where.  The  Monroe  Doctrine  was  more  fully  vindi 
cated  than  ever  before  in  the  adjustment  of  the  Pan 
ama  Canal  policies,  the  arbitration  of  the  Venezuela 
claims  and  in  other  ways.  Good  understandings  be 
tween  the  British  Empire  and  the  United  States  were 
promoted  as  a  basis  of  American  policy.  Mr.  Roose 
velt's  relations  with  foreign  diplomats  at  Washington 
were  cordial  and  sincere,  and  during  his  years  in 
office  we  were  more  entirely  on  good  terms  with  the 
world  than  at  any  previous  moment  in  our  history. 

The  Roosevelt  period  was  marked  by  the  massing 
of  capital  and  the  lessening  of  competition  in  rail- 


AS  PRESIDENT  177 

roads  and  industries.  The  forming  of  trusts  and 
combinations  called  attention  to  the  dangers  of  un 
restrained  capitalistic  control.  President  Roosevelt 
led  in  the  movement  for  reforming  railroad  manage 
ment  and  for  controlling  trusts.  In  the  working  out 
of  these  problems  of  ''big  business, "  there  were  new 
alignments,  and  the  President's  strongest  support 
came  from  quarters  which  had  once  looked  upon  him 
with  suspicion  as  the  special  protege  of  the  circles  of 
wealth  and  privilege. 

Everybody,  however,  came  to  see  that  his  sole  ob 
ject  was  to  build  public  policy  upon  sound  principles 
of  justice,  with  a  " square  deal"  for  all  men  alike. 
He  was  a  life-long  exponent  of  right-mindedness  in 
public  affairs ;  and  the  processes  of  reform  which  were 
set  in  motion  while  he  occupied  the  White  House  will 
have  accomplished  results  of  profound  importance 
for  more  than  one  generation. 


PANAMA  CANAL— GENEEAL  GOETHALS 


CHAPTER  XIII 
PANAMA  CANAL— GENERAL  GOETHALS 

CHRISTOPHER  COLUMBUS  started  with  the 
Cross  of  Christ  for  India,  by  a  new  route, 
and  headed  straight  from  Spain  toward  India. 
He  did  not  know  that  a  hemisphere  was  between  him 
and  the  Far  East,  and  in  his  voyage  westward  struck 
the  island  of  San  Salvador  and  revealed  a  new  world. 
Had  it  not  been  that  God  had  hung  two  continents  by 
a  narrow  strip  of  land  he  could  have  gone  straight 
through  the  Atlantic  into  the  Pacific  and  to  India. 
Ever  since  that  time  men  have  tried  to  cut  a  canal 
across  that  strip  at  the  Isthmus  of  Panama,  making 
the  Atlantic  and  the  Pacific  one. 

Four  hundred  years  ago  Spain  felt  that  there  ought 
to  be  such  a  passageway  opened  that  she  might  have 
access  to  the  gold  and  the  rich  agricultural  products 
of  Peru,  and  her  kings  and  engineers  undertook  to 
set  in  motion  such  plans,  but  they  found  that  the 
difficulties  were  so  insurmountable  that  the  proposi 
tion  was  abandoned.  The  United  States,  feeling  the 
importance  of  such  a  trans-Isthmian  route  in  the  pro 
motion  of  its  commercial  and  military  interests,  turned 
its  attention  to  the  building  of  such  a  canal.  About 

181 


182  THEODORE   ROOSE\ELT 

seventy  years  ago  a  treaty  was  signed  by  our  govern 
ment  with  New  Granada,  afterward  Colombia,  as  a 
preliminary  step  to  the  great  undertaking.  In  1850 
the  Clayton-Bulwer  treaty  between  United  States  and 
Great  Britain  was  signed.  In  1866  the  first  canal 
commission  was  appointed  by  the  United  States  gov 
ernment.  Ten  years  later  the  committee  reported  in 
favor  of  the  Nicaraguan  Canal.  Five  years  after  this 
Ferdinand  de  Lesseps,  having  earned  world-fame  as 
the  promoter  of  the  Suez  Canal,  organized  a  French 
company  to  build  a  sea-level  canal  at  the  Isthmus  of 
Panama.  After  eight  years,  the  expenditure  of  three 
hundred  million  dollars,  and  the  sacrifice  of  many 
precious  lives  the  project  was  given  up  as  a  failure. 
There  was  bad  engineering  and  business  recklessness, 
if  not  dishonesty,  in  the  administration,  and  the  dream 
of  four  centuries  went  up  in  smoke.  The  Spanish- 
American  War  called  fresh  attention  to  the  necessity 
of  America 's  building  and  owning  a  canal  at  the  Isth 
mus  of  Panama.  In  1901  the  Hay-Pauncefoote  treaty 
between  the  United  States  and  Great  Britain  revoked 
the  Clayton-Bulwer  treaty  and  gave  our  government 
full  sovereignty  rights  on  any  canal  across  the  isth 
mus.  In  the  same  year  a  new  Panama  committee  was 
created,  which  made  a  report  favoring  the  Nicaraguan 
route,  and  in  1902  Congress  passed  a  bill  authorizing 
the  purchase  of  the  old  French  rights  of  the  canal 
for  forty  million  dollars  and  recommending  the  con 
struction  of  the  canal  at  Panama. 

Theodore  Roosevelt  had  just  gotten  settled  in  the 
saddle  as  President  of  the  United  States  when  things 
began  to  move  with  reference  to  this  gigantic  enter 
prise.  The  Panama  Canal,  requiring  the  greatest 
piece  of  engineering  since  the  world  began,  appealed 
to  him — it  was  his  size.  The  failures  of  the  centuries 


PANAMA   CANAL  183 

meant  nothing  to  an  intellect  like  his,  and  a  will  that 
knew  no  obstacles.  He  determined  it  should  be  built, 
and  he  built  it.  Obstacles  as  great  as  those  that  made 
the  dream  of  the  centuries  a  failure  confronted  him, 
but  one  after  another  he  met  and  conquered  them, 
and  the  canal  stands  perhaps  as  his  greatest  monu 
ment,  if  not  the  greatest  monument  to  any  character 
in  the  world.  The  early  canal  commissions  being  led 
by  civilians  was  so  tied  up  with  governmental  red  tape 
that  they  made  unsatisfactory  progress.  President 
Roosevelt  picked  out  a  West  Point  graduate,  a  pro 
fessional  engineer,  secured  authority  from  Congress 
to  give  him  a  free  hand  in  the  Canal  Zone,  which  it 
had  acquired,  and  Lieut.-Col.  George  W.  Goethals, 
magnificently  equipped  for  his  work  in  every  way, 
stood  as  a  mighty  giant  by  the  side  of  Roosevelt  and 
was  his  strong  right  arm  in  cutting  through  the  Pan 
ama  Canal.  The  canal  extends  from  deep  water  at 
Colon  on  the  Atlantic  to  deep  water  at  Panama  on 
the  Pacific,  a  distance  of  fifty  miles,  or  forty  miles 
from  shore  to  shore.  It  has  great  lakes  and  locks, 
and  it  is  a  practical  business  proposition  with  ships, 
even  the  largest  of  them  going  both  ways  from  ocean 
to  ocean.  In  time  of  war  our  ownership  of  it  is  of 
unspeakable  advantage. 

One  of  the  most  mighty  triumphs  of  the  Panama 
administration  was  the  sanitary  revolution  affected  in 
the  Canal  Zone.  The  mosquitoes  were  killed,  yellow 
and  other  deadly  fevers  that  formerly  made  success 
impossible  were  banished,  and  one  of  the  worst  plague 
spots  on  the  earth  was  made  as  healthy  as  the  average 
American  city.  This  work  was  done  under  the  direc 
tion  of  Colonel  Gorgas  of  the  medical  corps  of  the 
United  States  army. 

These  two  magnificent  giants  stand  side  by  side  in 


184  THEODORE    KOOSEVELT 

this  titanic  undertaking.  If  Roosevelt  had  no  other 
monument,  the  Panama  Canal  would  make  him  im 
mortal.  Major-Gen.  George  W.  Goethals  shares  that 
immortality,  by  the  superb  manner  in  which  he  put 
into  active  operation  President  Roosevelt's  plans. 
The  undertaking  has  glory  enough  to  go  all  around, 
and  any  one  who  had  anything  to  do  with  the  building 
of  that  canal,  from  the  Secretary  of  War  down 
through  the  leading  engineers,  through  the  gold  men, 
down  through  the  silver  men  to  the  humblest  laborer, 
deserves  the  gratitude  of  his  countrymen.  Those 
thirty-five  thousand  persons  that  did  the  work,  and 
those  who  may  have  sacrificed  their  lives  in  the  under 
taking,  are  as  much  patriots  as  any  soldier  in  the  army 
and  as  much  heroes  as  the  soldiers  on  the  battlefield. 
They  will  never  know  how  valuable  their  lives  were 
to  their  country  and  what  a  monumental  service  they 
rendered  to  their  fellow-citizens  and  the  people  of  the 
world.  And  the  dear  women  who  went  with  their 
families  to  care  for  the  men  at  their  tasks  were  just 
as  loyal  patriots  as  the  men  themselves  and  deserve 
the  lasting  gratitude  of  mankind. 

Major-General  Goethals  not  only  finished  the  Pan 
ama  Canal,  but  when,  his  work  done  and  his  plans 
all  formed  for  a  return  home,  the  great  slides  closed 
the  waterway,  he  went  back  on  the  job  and  stayed 
there  until  dredges  and  shovels  had  restored  the  canal. 
He  restored  it  so  completely  that,  since  its  second 
opening  on  April  15,  1916,  it  has  been  ready,  every 
day,  to  serve  the  nation  and  the  commerce  of  the 
world.  In  recognition  of  his  pertinacity  of  purpose 
and  his  engineering  record  the  general  was  awarded 
the  John  Fritz  Medal,  one  of  the  hightest  attainable 
for  an  engineer. 

I  called  on  General  Goethals  and  asked  him  for  a 


PANAMA   CANAL  185 

few  facts  with  reference  to  the  relation  of  Mr.  Koose- 
velt  to  the  building  of  the  canal,  to  be  used  in  this 
volume;  he  cheerfully  consented,  and  gave  me  the 
following : 

My  relations  with  Colonel  Roosevelt  could  not  be  called 
intimate,  and  I  saw  him  personally  only  in  connection  with 
canal  matters  during  the  time  of  his  Presidency,  and  sub 
sequently  when  I  visited  the  States  I  invariably  reported 
to  him  the  condition  of  affairs,  knowing  his  extreme  inter 
est  in  the  project.  My  first  interview  was1  in  February, 
1907,  following  a  conversation  with  Mr.  Taft,  then  Secretary 
of  War,  who  advised  me  that  in  consequence  of  a  letter  re 
ceived  from  Mr.  Stevens,  the  President  had  concluded  to 
accept  his  resignation ;  that  he  had  recommended  me  to  suc 
ceed  him,  and  that  the  President  would  probably  ask  me 
to  call  on  him  in  connection  with  the  matter. 

That  evening  I  visited  him  at  the  White  House,  by  re 
quest,  and  found  that  he  had  spent  the  evening  discussing 
the  advisability  of  awarding  the  contract  for  the  construc 
tion  of  the  canal,  though  not  definitely  committed  to  such 
action.  We  spent  nearly  two  hours  discussing  the  various 
-provisions  of  the  specifications,  the  pros  and  cons,  so  far 
as  the  contractor  and  the  government  interests  were  con 
cerned,  and  I  was  particularly  impressed  with  his  intimate 
knowledge  of  all  details  affecting  the  canal,  and  the  con 
struction  difficulties  which  were  liable  to  be  encountered. 
I  was  furnished  with  a  copy  of  the  specification,  as  well 
as  with  the  summary  of  bids,  asked  to  go  over  them  and  be 
prepared  to  discuss  them  again  with  him  on  the  second  night 
following. 

At  the  beginning  of  this  interview  he  advised  me  that  he 
had  concluded  to  accept  Mr.  Stevens'  resignation  and  de 
cided  to  turn  the  construction  work  over  to  the  army  engi 
neers  and  to  order  me  to  the  canal  to  take  charge. 

We  again  spent  considerable  time  in  discussing  the  pro 
posed  contract,  the  financial  arrangements  made  by  the 
lowest  bidder  for  furnishing  the  bond,  and  at  the  conclusion 
it  was  definitely  decided  that  all  bids  would  be  rejected 
and,  whether  the  work  should  be  done  by  contract  or  other 
wise,  would  be  postponed  for  a  period  of  six  months,  dur 
ing  which  time  I  would  be  given  an  opportunity  to  study 


186  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

conditions  on  the  isthmus  and  to  report  my  reasons  as  soon 
as  I  reached  a  conclusion  as  to  the  method  that  should  be 
adopted  for  completing  the  work. 

The  next  personal  contact  I  had  with  him  was  in  Janu 
ary,  1908.  Prior  to  this  I  had  submitted  recommendations 
relative  to  carrying  on  the  work,  advocating  the  abandon 
ment  of  the  contract  method  for  reasons  which  were  speci 
fically  stated  in  the  report  that  I  made  to  him.  At  the 
January  interview  the  organization  charged  with  the  con 
struction  of  the  canal  was  discussed  at  great  length.  The 
Spooner  Act  of  1902,  which  authorized  the  President  to 
construct  the  canal  under  certain  conditions,  stipulated  that 
it  should  be  done  through  an  agency  consisting  of  seven 
members.  The  commission  was  to  pass  upon  all  plans  and 
all  matters  of  detail  connected  with  the  project,  even  to 
the  extent  of  employments  and  salaries  attached  thereto. 
It  was  a  very  bulky  organization,  had  not  worked  satis 
factorily  in  the  past,  and  was  not  working  satisfactorily. 

Subsequently  to  the  passage  of  the  Spooner  Act,  Mr. 
Roosevelt,  recognizing  the  inherent  difficulties  of  commission 
organization  for  management,  had  endeavored  to  secure  a 
modification  of  the  law  so  as  to  concentrate  the  authority 
and  fix  the  responsibility.  But  Congress,  fearful  of  vest 
ing  so  much  power  in  the  hands  of  one  man,  had  failed  to 
enact  the  necessary  legislation.  The  House  of  Representa 
tives  had  consistently  supported  the  President,  but  the  Sen 
ate  was  always  the  deterring  and  opposing  influence. 

On  the  recommendation  of  Mr.  Taft  in  1905,  the  Presi 
dent,  by  executive  order,  had  reorganized  the  commission 
by  the  creation  of  an  executive  committee  of  three,  who 
were  to  be  the  active  members  in  passing  upon  the  vari 
ous  matters  requiring  immediate  attention,  and  for  which 
the  calling  together  of  the  entire  commission  was  not  prac 
ticable.  And  this  had  not  worked  satisfactorily.  Certain 
jealousies  and  bickerings  had  arisen  which  the  President 
realized  and  stated  were  not  conducive  to  efficiency,  and 
after  our  conference  he  suggested  that  I  draw  up  an  execu 
tive  order  which  would  bring  about  a  reorganization  and 
accomplish  the  results  which  we  were  both  anxious  to  se 
cure.  I  caused  such  an  executive  order  to  be  prepared  and 
submitted  it  to  the  President,  who  signed  it ;  as  a  conse 
quence  of  which,  the  work  was  reorganized  and  carried  for 
ward  to  completion. 


PANAMA   CANAL  187 

Omitting  the  taking  of  Panama,  which  Colonel  Roose 
velt  claims  to  have  done,  and  the  details  of  wnich  I  am  not 
at  all  familiar  with,  the  most  important  step  in  connection 
with  the  canal  which  he  took  was  accepting  the  report  of 
the  minority  of  the  Board  of  International  Engineers,  con 
vened  for  the  purpose  of  determining  the  type  of  canal 
which  should  be  constructed  and  advocating  the  construc 
tion  of  the  lock  type  of  canal.  In  view  of  the  prominence 
of  the  engineers  signing  the  report,  the  study  that  they 
gave  to  the  question,  it  is  rather  remarkable  that  after  in 
dicating  in  his  letter  of  instructions  to  the  board  his  de 
sire  to  accomplish  the  construction  of  a  sea-level  canal,  if 
such  were  practicable,  that  he  should,  after  the  report  was 
submitted,  have  disregarded  the  recommendation  of  the  ma 
jority  and  advocate  the  lock  type.  Not  only  did  he  advocate 
the  lock  type,  but  he  worked  strenuously  for  it,  and,  practi 
cally  due  to  his  personal  interest  in  the  matter,  succeeded 
in  securing  the  consent  of  Congress.  I  spoke  to  him  many 
times  about  this  point,  but  could  nevei*  get  a  satisfactory 
answer  as  to  the  reasons  which  led  him  to  pursue  this 
course.  Probably  the  length  of  time  involved  was  the  more 
important  consideration  to  his  mind,  since  at  all  my  inter 
views  with  him  the  necessity  of  securing  the  completion  of 
the  canal  at  as  early  a  date  as  possible  seemed  to  be  the 
paramount  consideration.  The  opposition  that  he  developed 
by  his  action  was  strong  and  powerful,  yet  he  succeeded 
in  putting  it  over. 

The  great  objection  by  the  opponents  of  the  lock  type  of 
canal  was  the  feasibility  of  constructing  a  dam  at  Gatun 
and  the  practicability  of  its  holding  the  water  of  the  lake, 
because  of  misinformation  which  had  been  disseminated 
and  which  had  appeared  in  the  minds  of  the  members  of  the 
board  relative  to  the  underlying  strata  of  the  site. 

In  the  fall  of  1909,  during  a  flood  of  the  Chagres  River, 
and  because  of  a  slip  in  the  rockpile  forming  the  south 
tow  of  the  Gatun  dam,  and  which  was  sensationally  her 
alded  in  the  press  as  a  failure  of  the  Gatun  dam,  the  whole 
question  of  the  lock  type  versus  the  sea-level  canal  was  re 
vived,  and  action  had  to  be  taken  which  resulted  in  the 
appointment  of  a  Board  of  Consulting  Engineers  to  advise 
the  President  concerning  the  project.  The  bigness  of  the 
President  was  clearly  demonstrated  by  a  letter  that  he 
wrote  me  concerning  the  whole  subject,  and  stated  that 


188  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

while  we  both  thoroughly  believed  in  the  lock  type,  it  is 
human  to  err  and  that  we  might  have  made  a  mistake.  He 
personally  felt  the  matter  was  of  such  great  importance 
that  no  personal  feelings  or  pride  should  stand  in  the  way 
of  a  proper  solution,  and  was  willing  to  reverse  his  posi 
tion  if  he  felt  that  he  had  been  in  the  wrong  in  the  selec 
tion  of  the  type. 

As  the  accident,  if  it  may  so  be  called,  was  purely  local 
and  did  not  affect  in  any  wise  the  feasibility  and  practica 
bility  of  the  construction  of  the  dam,  the  Board  of  Engi 
neers  so  reported,  and  he  was  very  much  gratified  in  the 
result,  though  he  showed  throughout  that  he  was  a  big 
enough  man  to  change  his  views  if  he  felt  that  he  was  in 
the  wrong.  He  would  not  allow  politics  to  interfere  in  any 
part  of  the  work.  He  was  besieged  on  all  sides  to  appoint 
men  of  various  types  to  positions  on  the  canal,  and  his  at 
titude  is  clearly  exemplified  by  the  fact  that  on  one  occa 
sion  he  appointed  as  superintendent  on  one  part  of  the 
work  a  brother  of  a  political  boss  from  the  West.  He  did 
not  remain  long  on  the  work  for,  feeling  that  he  had  been 
placed  there  by  the  President,  he  felt  secure  and  did  very 
much  as  he  pleased.  The  next  time  I  saw  the  President  he 
was  very  much  amused  at  the  appeals  which  this  man  made 
to  him  to  be  reinstated,  questioning  my  right  to  remove  him 
under  the  circumstances,  and  remarked  that  he  would  have 
no  interference  with  the  efficiency  of  the  work,  that  he  had 
given  this  man  his  chance,  and  as  he  had  not  availed  him 
self  of  it  he  would  not  take  any  further  action  in  the 
matter. 

He  took  the  attitude  in  all  labor  questions  that  these 
were  matters  which  depended  so  largely  on  local  conditions 
that,  while  he  was  willing  to  listen,  he  would  not  take  any 
action  that  would  in  any  wise  disrupt  affairs  on  the  isth 
mus,  and  that  final  decision  must  rest  there. 

My  association  with  him  developed  in  me  that  same  spirit 
of  admiration  and  enthusiasm  concerning  him  which  is 
found  in  all  men  who  have  come  closely  in  contact  with  him. 
His  interest  in  the  work  never  lagged.  He  was  ever  ready 
to  assist  in  any  way  that  could  further  its  completion, 
though  after  he  left  office  there  was  no  inducement  that 
would  get  him  to  visit  the  work,  for  he  felt  that  his  visit 
might  be  misinterpreted  by  others  and  felt  it  wiser  to  re 
main  away  rather  than  be  misunderstood. 


PANAMA   CANAL  189 

In  a  recent  address  on  Mr.  Joseph  Choate,  Colonel 
Roosevelt  made  this  reference  to  the  great  difficulties 
that  confronted  him  in  the  building  of  the  Panama 
Canal  and  of  the  manner  in  which  those  difficulties 
were  overcome.  He  said: 

In  the  effort  to  secure  the  land  and  a  concession  of  the 
rights  required  for  the  construction  of  the  canal  there  was 
a  succession  of  negotiations,  resulting  in  agreement  and 
then  breaking  of  the  agreement  by  Colombia,  with  a  demand 
for  constantly  increasing  compensation.  I  made  up  my 
mind  that  the  talking  about  the  canal  might  go  on  for  fifty 
years  without  results,  so  I  decided  to  secure  for  our  coun 
try  the  canal  and  let  the  people  talk  about  the  canal  and 
me  as  they  pleased  for  the  next  fifty  years. 


HEART  SECRETS  TOLD  IN  A  WALK  TO 
THE  WHITE  HOUSE 


CHAPTER  XIV 

HEART  SECRETS  TOLD  IN  A  WALK  TO  THE 
WHITE  HOUSE 

i 

HAVING  an  important  matter  to  take  up  with 
President  Roosevelt,  I  went  down  to  Wash 
ington  Saturday  afternoon,  June  the  9th, 
1906.  In  communicating  with  Mr.  Loeb,  the  Presi 
dent's  able  secretary,  with  reference  to  an  appoint 
ment  on  Monday,  I  said  to  him : 

"Will  the  President  attend  church  Sunday  morn 
ing?" 

The  secretary  answered :  "  I  presume  so ;  he  nearly 
always  does.  Let  me  see  now,  there  may  be  doubt 
about  his  attending  the  service.  He  turned  his  ankle 
and  the  sprain  is  pretty  severe;  it  may  prevent  his 
going  to  church.  You  know  which  one  he  attends,  do 
you  not?  The  Grace  German  Reformed  Church  on 
15th  and  O  Streets,  N.  W.  If  you  have  no  appoint 
ment  of  your  own  to  preach  in  the  city,  it  might  be 
well  to  worship  at  the  President's  church.  If  he 
should  be  able  to  get  there  I  am  sure  he  would  be  glad 
to  see  you." 

I  was  on  hand  seasonably. 

At  three  minutes  to  eleven  an  usher  said:  "He  is 
always  here  by  this  time;  he  is  not  coming  to-day." 

193 


194  THEODORE    ROOSEVELT 

''Yes,  he  is,  all  the  same,"  answered  another. 
"  There  he  comes  yonder,  and  he  is  walking  to  beat 
the  band." 

Sure  enough,  there  he  was,  the  robust  man  in  pep 
per  and  salt  suit  made  in  business  fashion,  wearing  a 
stove-pipe  hat,  throwing  his  arms  and  pushing  and 
pulling  his  wounded  leg  with  a  perceptible  limp  at  a 
rapid  gait. 

Buttoning  up  my  Sunday  coat  nicely,  I  said  to  my 
self,  "I  will  fool  him,"  and  started  down  the  street, 
keeping  my  eyes  away  from  him,  thinking  I  could 
get  past  him  without  recognition.  But  no,  when  I  had 
gotten  about  twenty  feet  away  from  him,  he  cried 
out:  "My  dear  Dr.  Iglehart,  what  are  you  doing  here 
in  Washington  ?  Where  are  you  going  to  preach  ?  I 
am  on  my  way  to  my  church,  but  I  will  follow  you 
anywhere  to  hear  you  preach."  I  said:  "I  do  not 
preach  anywhere  this  morning."  "What  brought 
you  down?"  "You,"  I  answered.  "I  have  come 
down  on  purpose  to  see  you."  "That  was  lovely  in 
you  to  do  that.  I  do  not  know  any  one  in  America 
I  would  rather  see  this  day  than  you.  Just  turn 
around  and  go  back  with  me  to  church  and  after  the 
service  we  will  walk  back  to  the  White  House.  To 
morrow  I  have  appointments  with  admirals,  generals, 
Congressmen,  Senators,  etc.,  and  we  will  be  to  our 
selves,  and  we  will  have  a  bully  visit  together." 

On  entering  the  church  two  surprises  met  me — 
first,  the  smallness  of  the  audience  room,  having 
capacity  for  not  more  than  five  or  six  hundred; 
and  second,  the  appearance  of  the  congregation,  hav 
ing  so  few  evidences  of  wealth  or  social  pretense.  The 
surprise  in  neither  instance  was  a  disappointment,  for 
the  audience  room  was  new  and  neat  and  beautiful, 
and  the  congregation  was  of  the  common  people  with 


HEAKT   SECRETS   TOLD  195 

their  intelligence  and  worth,  the  foundation  of  the 
best  things  in  church  and  state. 

The  ritual  service,  which  was  almost  as  elaborate  as 
that  of  the  Episcopal  Church,  was  participated  in 
scrupulously  by  the  President,  who  stood,  sat  and 
responded  at  the  proper  time.  He  joined  heartily  in 
the  singing,  which  was  led  by  a  precentor  and  organ 
ist  without  a  choir.  He  was  the  best  listener  I  saw  in 
the  house.  The  weather  was  intensely  hot,  the  mer 
cury  at  ninety-five,  and  he  kept  a  large  palm  leaf  fan 
in  his  right  hand  going  to  the  limit  of  its  capacity 
every  moment  of  the  service.  The  pastor  of  the 
church,  the  Rev.  Dr.  Schenck,  was  not  in  his  pulpit, 
and  the  secretary  of  the  Missionary  Society  occupied 
his  place  and  preached  a  most  excellent  sermon.  It 
was  children's  day,  and  the  minister  preached  on 
"The  Home."  It  was  clear,  discriminating,  sound, 
timely,  pungent  and  inspiring.  Just  as  he  was  con 
cluding  his  sermon  the  President  put  his  hand  into 
his  trousers  pocket  as  though  he  were  fishing  for 
change  for  the  collection  soon  to  follow.  When  the 
plate  came  to  his  pew  he  took  out  his  pocketbook,  ap 
parently  as  full  as  it  could  hold,  and  dropped  a  bill 
upon  it  which  I  took  to  be  five  dollars. 

After  the  benediction  had  been  pronounced  the 
audience  remained  standing  till  the  President  and  the 
Secret  Service  men  had  left  the  house.  No  two- 
thousand-dollar  carriage  with  spanking  team  nor  five- 
thousand-dollar  automobile  awaited  him  at  the  door. 
These  would  have  been  an  annoyance  to  him  there, 
so  full  of  life  he  was  and  so  fond  of  exercise. 

I  commenced  to  tell  him  something  and  he  halted 
me  and  said: 

"Let  me  say  something  first  and  then  you  can  go  on 
with  your  story."  He  said:  "The  services  this  morn- 


196  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

ing  were  enjoyable.  The  sermon  was  good,  and  I  agreed 
with  him  in  the  points  he  made  that  the  home  is  the 
chief  foundation  stone  of  the  republic  and  the  hope 
of  the  church.  The  'Holy,  Holy,  Lord  God  Almighty' 
is  one  of  the  grandest  of  hymns ;  that  went  off  splen 
didly.  After  a  week  on  perplexing  problems  and  in 
heated  contests  it  does  so  rest  my  soul  to  come  into  the 
house  of  the  Lord  and  worship  and  to  sing  and  mean 
it,  the  '  Holy,  Holy,  Lord  God  Almighty, '  and  to  know 
that  He  is  my  Father,  and  takes  me  up  into  His  life 
and  plans,  and  to  commune  personally  with  Christ 
who  died  for  me.  I  am  sure  I  get  a  wisdom  not  my 
own  and  a  superhuman  strength  in  fighting  the  moral 
evils  I  am  called  to  confront.  The  other  two  hymns, 
while  full  of  good  theology  and  tender  sentiment,  did 
not  create  as  much  warmth  or  enthusiasm.  Lusty 
singing  is  a  great  help  in  church  worship/' 

Then,  pausing,  he  said:  "Go  on  now  with  your 
story!" 

"I  will  when  you  have  answered  a  question  I  will 
ask  you,"  I  replied. 

"What  is  it?"  he  inquired. 

"It  is  this,"  I  said.  "Why  did  you  select  this 
little  church  with  its  plain  people,  so  inconspicuous 
and  uninfluential  comparatively?" 

He  answered  me  with  not  a  little  feeling: 

"When  I  first  came  to  Washington  I  did  not  know 
there  was  any  Dutch  Reformed  church  here,  and 
went  with  my  wife  to  the  Episcopal  church.  But  on 
becoming  President  I  learned  that  there  was  a  little 
obscure  red  brick  building  tucked  away  on  the  back 
of  a  lot,  and  I  immediately  selected  that  as  my  church. 
The  fine  new  building  has  since  been  erected.  I  take 
sentimental  satisfaction  in  worshiping  in  the  church 
of  my  fathers. 


HEART   SECRETS    TOLD  197 

' '  Another  reason  why  I  came  to  this  church  is  that 
it  is  a  church  of  the  plain  people.  There  are  persons 
of  means  and  culture  among  them,  but  most  of  them 
are  the  common  people,  to  whom  you  know  I  am  so 
partial.  If  there  is  any  place  on  earth  where  earthly 
distinctions  vanish  it  is  in  the  church,  in  the  presence 
of  God.  He  knows  no  difference  between  the  highest 
ruler  and  the  humblest  subject.  All  He  cares  for  is 
character.  I  have  been  not  a  little  grieved  in  attend 
ing  services  in  some  of  the  rich  churches  of  the  great 
cities  to  see  so  much  attention  paid  to  social  distinc 
tions.  I  cannot  think  that  the  plainer  people  would 
be  very  happy  if  they  were  to  attempt  to  worship  in 
such  places,  and  I  fear  that  some  of  the  rich  and 
fashionable  would  be  just  as  unhappy  to  have  them 
do  so.  There  is  a  minister  in  New  York  City  to  whom 
I  have  always  given  especial  credit  for  having  suc 
ceeded,  more  than  any  one  I  know,  in  holding  a  large 
congregation  of  rich  and  poor  people,  in  happy  fellow 
ship,  for  a  long  number  of  years.  The  nearer  the 
people  get  to  the  heart  of  Christ,  the  nearer  they  get 
to  each  other,  irrespective  of  earthly  conditions." 

Continuing  he  said:  "I  am  engaged  in  one  of  the 
greatest  moral  conflicts  of  the  age — that  of  colossal 
lawless  corporations  against  the  government.  I  am 
not  fighting  rich  men.  Was  I  not  raised  among  the 
rich?  Did  I  not  inherit  money?  I  know  what  a 
blessing  wealth  is,  honestly  secured  and  wisely  dis 
pensed.  I  am  fighting  the  institutions  that  have 
grown  enormously  rich  by  fraud;  that  have  ground 
the  faces  of  the  poor  and  have  for  years  shown  such 
sullen  contempt  for  the  laws  governing  them.  By  a 
system  of  wholesale  bribery,  paid  lobbyists  have  been 
placed  at  the  State  and  national  capitols  to  buy  the 
law,  and  representatives  have  been  selected  in  the 


198  THEODORE    ROOSEVELT 

state  and  national  legislatures,  and  sometimes  on  the 
bench,  to  do  their  masters'  will.  Having  trammeled 
the  popular  will  by  these  dishonorable  methods  and 
secured  laws  as  friendly  to  themselves  as  possible, 
they  turn  around  and  break  those  very  laws  in  the 
most  shameless  manner.  For  years  some  of  them  have 
been  stronger  than  the  government  and  they  have  not 
been  able  to  conceal  the  insolence  which  is  begotten  of 
despotic  power.  Any  attempt  to  enforce  the  laws 
regulating  them  has  been  treated  with  impatience  and 
contempt. ' '  » 

He  said:  "The  republic  cannot  live  ten  years 
longer  if  things  go  on  this  way.  The  oppression  of 
lawless  wealth,  and  the  purchase  of  lawmakers  and 
rulers  by  it,  have  wrecked  most  of  the  empires  of  the 
past,  and  if  not  resisted  and  defeated  will  ruin  our 
republic.  As  the  executive  of  this  nation  I  deter 
mined  that  no  man  or  set  of  men  should  defy  the  law 
of  the  land.  These  huge  lawless  corporations  are 
squirming  now  and  crying  'Persecution!'  but  they 
have  got  to  stop  their  crimes.  All  they  have  to  do 
is  to  obey  the  laws  like  other  people  and  there  will  be 
no  trouble.  My  chief  desire  now  is  that  God  will  let 
me  live  long  enough  to  demonstrate  the  fact  that  the 
rich  and  powerful  must  obey  the  law  as  well  as  the 
poor  and  feeble — not  any  better  nor  any  worse,  but 
just  the  same.1'  The  President  said  "just  the  same" 
with  great  emphasis. 

I  told  him  that  the  people  of  the  country,  irrespec 
tive  of  religious  creed  or  political  opinion,  were  be 
hind  him  in  the  great  warfare  he  had  undertaken. 

It  was  about  a  mile  from  the  church  to  the  White 
House  and  the  walk  was  a  very  happy  one  for  me. 
What  the  President  said  was  so  full  of  wisdom,  of 
exhilaration  and  inspiration.  I  admired  his  strong 


HBAET    SECRETS    TOLD  199 

body,  of  which  he  took  such  splendid  care,  which  had 
served  him  so  well  in  the  enforcement  of  his  intel 
lectual  plans.  The  flash  of  his  eye  indicated  intel 
lectual  genius  of  the  highest  type  and  his  tender 
words  to  me,  personally,  made  me  realize  that  his  heart 
was  wide  and  deep  as  the  sea.  But  the  thing  that 
most  impressed  me  was  his  moral  heroism,  his  sim 
plicity,  his  honesty,  his  justice  and  his  intense  devo 
tion  to  the  right.  I  felt  that  his  promotion  was  the 
tribute  a  mighty  nation  had  paid  to  the  man  the 
crown  of  whose  greatness  was  his  goodness,  and  I  felt 
that  there  was  a  most  intimate  relation  between  Theo 
dore  Roosevelt,  the  ruler  and  favorite  of  a  nation,  and 
the  church  and  the  God  of  his  fathers. 

Recently  Colonel  Roosevelt  said  to  me:  "You  re 
member  the  walk  we  had  from  the  church  to  the 
White  House,  a  dozen  years  ago,  when  I  turned  my 
heart  inside  out  to  you,  and  told  you  I  believed  God 
had  raised  me  up  to  lead  the  nation  in  its  desperate 
fight  for  its  life  against  the  illegal  despotism  of  com 
bined  wealth  in  collusion  with  corrupt  municipal, 
state  and  federal  office  holders,  and  that  my  daily 
prayer  was  that  God  would  spare  my  life  long  enough, 
to  see  that  menace  to  the  republic  removed?  He  did 
spare  me,  and  I  thank  Him.  But  I  thank  Him  most 
for  sparing  me  to  take  a  part  in  the  settlement  of  the 
great  world  war.  No  Hebrew  prophet  was  ever 
called  up  to  cry  out  against  the  danger  confronting 
his  nation,  or  the  moral  evils  that  curse  the  world, 
more  truly  than  I  have  been  called  up  to  plead  for  an 
ideal  Americanism,  strong,  brave,  just  and  pure,  100 
per  cent,  loyal  American,  and  also  to  fight  to  the 
death  absolute  despotism  in  its  oppressions  and 
crimes,  which  in  its  demoniacal  rage  for  world  rule  has 
killed  off  the  flower  of  the  world,  its  young  men,  and 


200  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

caused  more  agony  than  has  ever  been  suffered  since 
the  world  began.  I  thank  God  that  I  have  lived  to 
see  the  victory  which  places  the  United  States  in  the 
forefront  of  the  free  peoples  of  the  world  and  which 
means  universal  democracy  with  its  liberty,  happi 
ness,  thrift  and  love  to  the  millions  of  the  oppressed 
children  of  earth,  which  will  hasten  the  establish 
ment  of  the  Kingdom  of  Christ  in  the  world,  with 
its  universal  peace,  righteousness,  and  love." 

I  know  that  Theodore  Roosevelt  took  the  Bible  as 
the  standard  of  individual  character  and  national  vir 
tue,  for  he  told  me  so,  and  I  believe  that  God  was  in 
him  and  back  of  him  in  his  miraculously  great  per 
sonality  and  service  for  his  country  and  the  world. 


(P)  Underwood  &  Underwood,  N.  Y. 

GEN.     WHEELER,    GEN.     WOOD    AND    COL.    ROOSEVELT, 
SPANISH-AMERICAN    WAR. 


INTEEVIEWED  PRESIDENT  ON 
GOVEENOE  HUGHES '  EENOMINATION 


CHAPTER  XV 

INTERVIEWED    PRESIDENT    ON    GOVERNOR 
HUGHES'  RENOMINATION 

I  WAS  informed  by  one  who  knew  that  influential 
leaders  of  the  Republican  party  intended  to  fight 
the  renomination  of  Charles  E.  Hughes  for  the 
governorship  of  New  York.  The  convention  was  to  be 
held  in  the  near  future,  and  I  felt  that  the  situa 
tion  was  serious  and  that  some  extra  effort  should  be 
put  forth  to  defeat  such  plans.  I  knew  that  Governor 
Hughes'  savage  attack  upon  race-track  gambling  had 
stirred  the  bitter  hostility  of  the  sporting  gentry  and 
both  Democratic  and  Republican  politicians  who  were 
in  sympathy  with  them.  I  knew  also  that  some  of 
Colonel  Roosevelt's  friends  who  were  candidates  when 
Mr.  Hughes  was  nominated  had  renewed  their  plans 
for  the  nomination  of  somebody  else.  Fearing  that 
there  might  be  a  hitch  in  renominating  Governor 
Hughes,  I  instinctively  turned  toward  Theodore 
Roosevelt,  to  whom  I  had  always  gone  for  so  many 
years  when  a  moral  issue  was  at  stake,  with  my  con 
cern  and  alarm  for  the  decision  of  the  Convention. 

And  so  I  fired  a  long  telegram  to  President  Roose 
velt,  at  Oyster  Bay,  saying  that  it  would  not  do  to 
nominate  any  one  else  but  Hughes;  that  he  repre 
sented,  in  personal  character  and  public  administra 
tion,  the  highest  ability  and  the  strongest  virtue; 
that  the  church  people  were,  as  a  body,  behind  him, 
and  that  they  would  resent  his  defeat  at  the  conven- 

203 


204  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

tion  with  anger  and  rebellion.  I  said  in  my  message 
that  such  a  failure  would  defeat  Taft  by  more  than 
one  hundred  thousand  votes,  when  he  ought  easily  to 
carry  New  York,  and  that  it  would  be  in  the  interest 
of  righteousness  for  him  to  use  his  utmost  influence  in 
securing  the  nomination  of  Mr.  Hughes.  I  knew  how 
he  loved  the  best  things,  and  I  knew  also  how  anxious 
he  was  that  Taft  should  have  the  solid  church  vote 
for  the  presidency.  I  received  on  the  same  day  a 
telegram  from  the  President,  asking  me  to  come  out 
to  Oyster  Bay  on  the  first  train  in  the  morning,  in 
dicating  the  time  of  the  train. 

On  reaching  Oyster  Bay  station,  a  chauffeur  came 
up  to  me  and  asked  me  if  I  were  Dr.  Iglehart,  and 
said  the  President  had  sent  his  car  down  to  bring  me 
out  to  Sagamore  Hill.  And  in  a  few  minutes  we  were 
at  his  home.  There  were  perhaps  a  dozen  persons  ID 
the  reception-room,  and  Mr.  Roosevelt  came  to  me  and 
said:  "I  have  men  here  from  half-a-dozen  States  with 
important  interests,  but  I  consider  that  matter  about 
which  you  wired  me  yesterday  of  supreme  impor 
tance.  ' '  He  said, ' '  Come  back  with  me,  and  we  will  sit 
on  the  porch  and  have  a  talk  and  nice  visit  together. ' ' 
He  pulled  two  large  cane  armchairs  close  together, 
and  we  rocked  and  talked  and  laughed  and  visited; 
and  then  he  said,  "Now,  tell  me  just  exactly  how 
you  feel  about  the  renomination  of  Hughes,  and  the 
reason  why  it  ought  to  be  done." 

"Governor  Hughes,  I  believe,  is  one  of  the  ablest 
men,  intellectually,  in  this  country,"  I  said.  "His 
mind  is  clear,  keen  and  discriminating;  his  will  is 
all-daring,  and  his  conscientious  convictions  are  as 
deep  as  his  life.  Primarily,  there  is  no  use  trying  to 
look  for  an  abler  man  if  he  were  in  sight,  and  he  is 
not."  Mr.  Roosevelt  said,  "You  are  right  in  your 


GOV.  HUGHES'  RENOMINATION       205 

estimate  of  him ;  I  consider  him  one  of  the  most  bril 
liant  men,  intellectually,  in  the  United  States.  It 
would  be  hard  to  match  him  anywhere,  and  I  believe 
that  his  moral  uprighteousness  is  as  strongly  marked 
as  is  his  intellectuality."  Then  I  said  to  him,  "He 
has  fairly  earned  a  renomination  by  his  wise  and  fear 
less  administration,  and  especially  for  the  relentless 
warfare  he  has  made  on  race-track  gambling  and  on 
other  evils.  It  would  be  nothing  short  of  a  calamity 
to  let  a  man  be  turned  down  as  the  penalty  of  his 
moral  heroism,  and  I  cannot  think  of  anything  that 
would  so  deeply  offend  and  enrage  the  best  people 
of  our  State,  irrespective  of  political  opinion.  I  have 
named  as  the  first  reason  for  his  renomination,  his 
great  ability  and  peculiar  fitness  for  the  office;  the 
second,  the  valuable  service  of  his  honest  and  fearless 
administration;  the  third  reason  I  would  give  is  one 
of  political  expediency.  I  have  always  loved  you, 
and  supported  you,  because  you  put  moral  principle 
ahead  of  everything  else  and  always  appealed  to  the 
moral  convictions  of  the  people  to  support  you.  They 
have  always  responded  to  your  appeal  because  they 
were  loyal  to  the  right.  And  thus  you  have  demon 
strated  that  which  the  nation  had  never  before 
learned — that  the  wisest  political  expediency  is  in  the 
espousel  of  the  highest  moral  principle,  that  right  is 
the  most  popular  thing  that  can  be  injected  into  a 
political  campaign. 

"If  Governor  Hughes  should  be  turned  down  at 
that  convention,  because  he  fought  moral  evil  so  val 
iantly,  the  good  people  of  the  State  would  bolt  the 
Republican  ticket  in  droves  and  would  take  great 
pleasure  in  defeating  the  party  that,  with  its  eyes 
wide  open,  chose  the  wrong  side  of  a  moral  question. 
Your  friend  Taft,  whom  you  are  championing  for  the 


206  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

presidency,  would  be  buried  in  New  York  State  by 
an  avalanche  of  votes. "  Mr.  Roosevelt  said  to  me: 
1 ' Everything  you  have  said  of  Governor  Hughes' 
ability,  character  and  service  is  true;  I  consider  that 
he  is  incorruptible  in  his  character,  and  that  the  pub 
lic  interests  would  be  safe  in  his  hand.  While  in  most 
states  I  have  kept  my  hands  off  the  local  contests  and 
factional  differences,  and  while  I  have  not  felt  like  ob 
truding  myself  upon  the  differences  of  our  political 
leaders  in  this  State,  if  I  can  see  clearly  that  the  ac 
tion  you  urge  will  be  for  the  best  interest  of  the  peo 
ple  and  of  the  highest  public  morals,  I  will  break  the 
rule  which  I  have  usually  kept  and  see  if  I  can  bring 
about  his  nomination."  He  said,  "We  will  begin 
just  now." 

He  did  not  at  that  time  call  in  any  stenographer  nor 
make  any  notes,  nor  did  I  take  any.  He  said,  "You 
may  report  to  the  public  what  the  President  says." 
He  went  on  for  some  little  time.  I  remembered  every 
word  that  he  said  to  me.  With  a  warm,  hearty  hand 
shake  and  a  heartier  "God  bless  you"  from  him  I 
went  back  in  the  car  to  the  depot.  Just  as  the  car 
approached  the  depot  I  saw  a  train  move  out  of  it. 
As  I  got  out  of  the  motor  I  was  met  by  a  half-dozen 
or  more  reporters  of  the  New  York  City  papers,  who 
gathered  about  me  and  said :  '  *  The  train  is  gone,  and 
there  is  no  other  one  until  an  hour  from  now;  you 
are  marooned,  and  you  may  just  as  well  surrender;" 
and  they  continued,  "Well,  what  did  he  say  about 
it?"  "About  what?"  I  answered.  They  said,  "Oh, 
come  off;  don't  seem  so  innocent.  What  did  the 
President  say  about  Governor  Hughes 's  nomination?" 
I  answered,  "Who  said  I  talked  with  President 
Roosevelt  on  that  subject  ? ' '  And  they  said, '  *  A  little 
bird  told  us." 


GOV.  HUGHES'  RENOMINATION       207 

The  reason  why  I  was  not  communicative  at  first 
was  that  I  wanted  to  put  so  important  a  message  to 
the  public  in  decent  literary  form,  so  that  it  might 
accomplish  its  purpose  better,  and  desired  a  little 
time  for  consideration.  But  the  boys  were  so  insistent 
that  I  said,  "Have  you  a  shorthand  man  in  your  num 
ber?"  And  one  of  them  spoke  up  and  said  that  he 
was  one.  "You  and  I  will  go  to  this  corner, 
here  in  the  station,  and  the  rest  will  leave  us 
alone,  and  I  will  see  if  I  can  put  the  substance  of  what 
the  President  said  to  me  in  proper  form."  The  next 
morning  all  the  New  York  papers  and  the  papers  in 
many  cities  of  the  country  had  the  following: 

OYSTER  BAY,  AUGUST  29. — President  Roosevelt's  atti 
tude  in  regard  to  the  political  situation  in  New  York  was 
reflected  to-day  in  an  interview  given  out  by  the  Rev.  Dr. 
Ferdinand  C.  Iglehart,  after  a  talk  with  the  President  at 
Sagamore  Hill.  "The  President,"  said  Dr.  Iglehart,  "told 
me  that  he  had  no  disposition  to  crowd  his  desire  for  Gov 
ernor  Hughes'  renomination  upon  the  leaders  of  the  lie- 
publican  party,  but  he  did  not  hesitate  to  say  that  he 
thought  it  would  be  political  wisdom  to  place  Governor 
Hughes  at  the  head  of  the  ticket  again  this  coming  elec 
tion."  Dr.  Iglehart,  who  is  an  intimate  friend  of  the  Presi 
dent's,  is  a  member  of  the  New  York  Conference  of  the 
Methodist  Church.  He  was  with  the  President  for  some 
time,  and  the  question  of  the  renomination  of  Governor 
Hughes  was  discussed.  After  the  conference  Dr.  Iglehart 
said  that  he  was  delighted  to  find  that  the  President's 
views  and  his  were  in  perfect  harmony  on  the  renomination 
of  Governor  Hughes.  There  was  no  doubt  in  his  mind  about 
the  general  desire  of  church  people  throughout  the  State  for 
the  renomination  of  the  Governor.  "They  believe  in  his 
ability  and  integrity,"  Dr.  Iglehart  added,  "and  desire  his 
continuance  in  office.  These  church  people  usually  have 
given  the  Republican  party  the  majority  in  the  State  elec 
tions,  and  it  seems  to  me  that  it  would  be  a  dangerous  ex 
periment  for  the  political  leaders  not  to  accord  him  the 
nomination."  Some  votes,  he  thought,  might  be  lost  by  the 


208  THEODORE    ROOSEVELT 

renomination  of  Governor  Hughes,  but  he  believed  that 
where  two  or  three  would  be  lost  dozens  would  be  gained. 
"The  line  could  not  be  more  plainly  drawn,"  Dr.  Iglehart 
continued,  "than  it  is  at  the  present  time,  and  the  right 
side  of  a  moral  issue  is  a  political  asset  which  the  Republi 
can  party  will  need,  and  must  have,  to  succeed  in  the  com 
ing  election.  There  is  little  doubt  that  revolt  from  the 
Republican  ranks  will  be  disastrous,  if  Governor  Hughes 
shall  not  be  nominated,  as  the  feeling  on  the  question  is  so 
deep  that  the  revolt  against  the  ticket  would  be  calami 
tous.  To  turn  down  a  man  like  Governor  Hughes,  who  has 
not  only  a  State  but  a  national  reputation  for  political  in 
tegrity,  would,  in  my  judgment,  be  political  folly.  It  seems 
to  me  that  there  is  a  large  stick  of  dynamite  in  the  politi 
cal  camp,  which,  without  most  careful  handling,  is  in  immi 
nent  danger  of  exploding.  There  are  splendid  men  in  the 
Republican  party,  any  one  of  whom  would  make  a  good 
Governor,  but  no  man,  however  able  or  virtuous,  would  be 
acceptable  as  a  substitute  for  Governor  Hughes,  now  that 
the  issue  has  been  drawn  so  distinctly.  Whoever  may  or 
may  not  have  been  to  blame  for  the  difference  between  the 
Governor  and  the  leaders  of  the  party,  it  is  evident  that 
the  church  people  of  all  denominations,  and  people  of  high 
moral  instinct  who  are  not  members  of  any  church,  who 
summer  and  winter  with  the  Republican  party,  desire  the 
continuance  of  Governor  Hughes  in  office,  and  desire  it  in 
tensely.  We  do  not  believe  the  Republican  leaders,  many 
of  whom  are  persons  of  good  judgment  and  high  moral 
ideals,  will  commit  the  colossal  blunder  of  turning  him 
down.  We  are  strengthened  in  these  convictions  by  the 
interview  just  had  with  the  President,  who  as  a  political 
leader,  and  as  an  exponent  of  civic  virtue,  is  a  sagacious 
man  to  follow." 

BUSINESS    COMMITTEE    VISIT    TO    WHITE 

HOUSE 

Before  Mr.  Roosevelt  had  made  his  name  and 
fame  a  household  word  I  noticed  that  he  was  by 
far  the  best  informed  man  I  had  ever  met.  Of  the 
hundreds  of  subjects  I  have  taken  up  with  him,  there 
was  not  one  about  which  he  did  not  know  much  more 


GOV.  HUGHES '  RENOMINATION       209 

than  I  did  myself,  and  some  of  those  subjects  were 
specialties  upon  which  years  of  study  and  labor  had 
been  spent.  And  as  years  advanced  I  learned  that  he 
was  not  only  regarded  by  those  closest  to  him,  but  by 
well-nigh  universal  consent,  as  the  best  informed  man 
in  the  largest  range  of  subjects  of  anybody  in  the  na 
tion,  if  not  in  the  world.  Here  is  an  incident  which 
illustrates  this  fact.  While  he  was  President,  a  com 
pany  of  New  York  business  men  came  to  me  and  said 
that  they  had  some  little  difficulty  in  making  an  ap 
pointment  With  the  President  at  "Washington  and 
asked  if  I  would  aid  them  in  securing  a  hearing.  I 
wired  the  President  and  got  a  date  for  the  gentlemen, 
Tuesday  morning  of  the  next  week.  They  then  asked 
me  to  accompany  them  to  Washington  and  be  with 
them  when  they  laid  their  proposition  before  Presi 
dent  Eoosevelt.  On  Monday  evening  at  the  hotel  the 
delegation  met  to  plan  the  approach  to  the  President 
the  next  morning.  The  leader  explained  how  it  was 
that  he  would  use  certain  arguments  and  occupy  cer 
tain  time  in  presenting  the  matter.  He  supposed  that 
it  would  be  like  a  hearing  before  a  judge  or  a  legis 
lative  committee  and  that  fifteen  or  twenty  minutes' 
time  would  be  allowed  him  for  the  presentation  of 
his  subject.  "You  do  not  understand  Mr.  Roosevelt 
at  all,"  I  told  him.  "If  you  were  to  undertake  in  a 
dignified  manner  to  make  the  speech  you  contemplate 
before  him,  he  would  get  up  from  his  seat,  without 
any  ceremony,  and  instruct  the  clerk  to  call  somebody 
else  into  the  room  and  we  would  consider  ourselves 
dismissed.  He  is  so  supremely  busy  that  a  minute 
with  him  is  an  hour.  What  you  want  to  do  is  to  take 
a  card  about  as  long  as  your  thumb,  put  a  heading  of 
the  things  you  intend  to  say  in  your  speech  and  say 
them  without  any  amplification  and  say  them  quickly, 


210  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

if  you  want  his  attention  or  his  favor."  I  then  told 
him  that  when  he  had  read  or  recited  the  abstract 
on  the  little  card,  he  would  find  that  the  President 
would  instantly  tell  him  ever  so  much  more  about  the 
business  he  represented  than  he  knew  himself,  though 
he  had  spent  a  lifetime  in  it. 

The  President  had  gathered  our  little  company  in 
chairs  about  him  and  the  leader  did  as  he  was  advised 
to  do.  When  he  had  gotten  through  with  his  pre 
sentation,  which  took  about  two  minutes,  the  Presi 
dent  instantly  said,  "Gentlemen,  I  understand  that 
you  want  so  and  so ;  these  are  the  facts  in  the  case, ' ' 
telling  them  things  that  they  themselves  did  not  know 
about  their  own  business.  I  reached  my  foot  over 
and  put  it  down  on  the  toes  of  the  leader,  reminding 
him  that  Mr.  Roosevelt  knew  more  about  what  he  was 
talking  about  than  he  himself  did.  Then  the  Presi 
dent  continued,  "Then  you  want  me  to  do  so  and 
so."  He  did  not  wait  for  a  word  from  the  members 
of  the  committee,  but  said,  "My  mind  is  clear  upon 
the  subject,  but  I  prefer  that  you  should  meet  two 
members  of  my  Cabinet,  who  have  the  responsibility 
in  such  matters;  they  will  meet  your  committee  this 
afternoon  at  three  o'clock  and  you  will  know  in  time 
to  go  home  to-night  whether  we  shall  be  able  to  grant 
your  request." 

This  incident  not  only  illustrates  his  almost  infinite 
knowledge  of  facts,  but  also  the  rapidity  with  which 
he  dispatched  business  at  his  office  in  the  White 
House.  The  matters  that  had  engaged  the  attention 
of  these  business  men  for  years,  some  of  them  for  life 
time,  with  a  matter  over  which  they  had  talked  and 
slept  and  dreamed,  were  attended  to,  as  far  as  he  him 
self  was  concerned,  in  about  three  minutes. 


THEODOKE  EOOSEVELT  A  HERCULES— 
BIG  STICK— NATURALIST— AUTHOR 


CHAPTER  XVI 

THEODORE   ROOSEVELT  A  HERCULES— BIG 
STICK— NATURALIST— AUTHOR 

IN  Theodore  Roosevelt  we  have  so  many  great  men 
combined  in  one  that  ordinary  words  and  meas 
urements  do  not  justly  describe  him.     Looking 
backward  to  find  a  parallel  for  him,  we  must  go  to 
the  earliest  history  of  Greece,  to  the  mythical  man 
called  Hercules,  son  of  the  gods,  powerful  alike  in 
body,  mind  and  soul,  the  mightiest  that  Greece  or 
the  world  could  produce.    Their  classic  poets  pictured 
him  as  the  symbol  of  power,  wisdom  and  virtue. 

The  similarity  between  the  Hercules  of  classic  story 
and  Roosevelt,  our  modern  Hercules,  is  thus  seen. 
The  ancient  hero  was  a  noted  pugilist ;  he  was  taught 
fighting  by  Castor;  he  was  the  best  shot  of  the  na 
tion,  and  defeated  in  archery  his  teacher,  Eurytus, 
and  his  three  sons,  who  held  the  record  up  to  that 
time.  He  was  taught  driving  by  Autolycus  and  sur 
passed  all' other  charioteers.  A  fine  scholar,  he  learned 
wisdom  from  Minerva.  He  was  the  most  famous  of 
hunters  and  was  happiest  when  he  was  killing  lions 
and  other  man-eating  beasts.  He  was  a  great  patriot, 
slaying  a  hostile  king  and  delivering  the  nation  from 
a  heavy  annual  tribute.  He  was  a  benevolent  man 
and  busied  himself  in  protecting  the  people  of  his 
country  from  wild  beasts  and  other  dangers.  He 
carried  a  big  stick,  sometimes  of  brass,  but  usually  a 

213 


214  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

large  wooden  stick,  with  a  big  knot  on  the  upper  end 
of  it,  which  he  himself  cut  out  of  the  forest. 

In  most  of  the  figures  which  we  have  preserved  to 
this  day  Hercules  holds  that  big  stick  in  his  hand. 
He  was  the  symbol  of  the  Greeks'  most  powerful  man. 
His  weapon  was  strong  enough  and  ever  ready  to' 
hammer  down  the  wrong  and  to  protect  the  right. 
The  parallel  is  not  only  in  the  equipment,  but  also 
in  the  marvelous  deeds  of  the  hero. 

The  king  of  Argus  and  Mycenae  was  so  jealous 
of  the  rising  popularity  of  this  great  hero  that  he 
imposed  upon  him  twelve  tasks,  each  of  which  was 
supposed  to  be  impossible.  These  are  celebrated  in 
mythology  as  the  Twelve  Labors  of  Hercules.  The 
gods  compelled  him  to  undertake  these  twelve  tasks, 
impossible  to  mortals,  but  equipped  him  for  the  per 
formance  of  the  miraculous  deeds.  He  received  from 
Minerva  a  coat  of  arms  and  helmet,  from  Mercury  a 
sword,  from  Neptune  a  horse,  from  Jupiter  a  shield, 
from  Apollo  a  bow  and  arrows,  and  the  big  stick. 

The  following  are  the  twelve  labors  imposed  upon 
Hercules:  1,  He  killed  the  lion  of  Nemasa.  2,  He 
killed  the  Hydra.  3,  He  caught  the  swift  stag  with 
golden  horns  and  brazen  feet  that  haunted  the  neigh 
borhood  of  Oenoe.  4,  He  brought  alive  to  the  king 
the  wild  boar  which  ravaged  his  realm,  and  destroyed 
the  Centauri.  5,  He  cleaned  the  Augean  stables.  6, 
He  killed  the  carnivorous  birds  of  Lake  Stymphalus. 

7,  He  captured  the  wild  bull  that  laid  waste  Crete. 

8,  He  captured  the  man-eating  mares  of  Diomedes. 

9,  He  obtained  the  girdle  of  Queen  Hippolyte.     10, 
He  killed  the  monster  Geryon  and  set  up  the  Pillars 
of  Hercules  at  Gibraltar.    11,  He  secured  the  golden 
apples  of  the  Hesperides.     12,  He  dragged  on  earth 
from  Hades  the  three-headed  dog  Cerberus. 


NATURALIST  AND  AUTHOR  215 

There  are  more  than  twelve  miraculous  labors  of 
our  modern  Hercules,  but  twelve  stand  out  most 
prominently. 

FIRST — Our  Hercules  became  the  head  of  the  na 
tion.  The  ancient  hero  never  did  so  great  a  thing  as 
to  become  the  ruler  of  the  greatest  nation  of  the  world. 
With  all  his  power,  it  is  not  recorded  that  he  had 
any  political  favor  or  that  he  ruled  any  kingdom. 

SECOND — He  killed  the  spoils  system,  which  threat 
ened  to  overthrow  the  nation.  The  ancient  hero 
turned  the  river  into  the  Augean  stables  and  cleaned 
them,  but  that  was  not  as  great  a  wonder  as  the 
cleansing  of  American  politics  by  Theodore  Roosevelt. 

THIRD — He  used  the  big  stick  in  crushing  the  il 
legal  combinations  of  wealth  which  menaced  the  re 
public. 

FOURTH — He  dug  the  Panama  Canal — a  greater 
wonder  than  all  the  twelve  labors  of  Hercules,  and 
equal  to  the  seven  wonders  of  the  world. 

FIFTH — He  settled  the  coal  miners'  strike.  The 
miners  in  the  anthracite  district  of  Pennsylvania  went 
on  a  strike  which  threatened  to  tie  up  the  industries 
of  the  nation.  Grievances  on  the  part  of  employees 
and  employers  were  deeply  cherished  and  apparently 
irreconcilable.  Passions  were  stirred  to  the  highest 
degree  and  bloodshed  was  feared.  President  Roose 
velt  had  no  governmental  commissions  that  he  could 
use  in  the  settlement.  He  had  to  take  the  matter 
up  personally  with  the  workmen,  the  proprietors  and 
everybody  concerned,  and  by  his  magnetism  and  pow 
erful  will  he  brought  the  two  factions  together, 
averted  a  tie-up  in  the  nation  and  gave  peace  to  the 
coal  industry  for  years. 

SIXTH — He  secured  the  settlement  of  the  war  be 
tween  Russia  and  Japan.  While  the  desperate  war 


216  THEODORE    ROOSEVELT 

was  raging  between  Russia  and  Japan  in  1905,  Presi 
dent  Roosevelt  addressed  through  John  Hay,  his  Sec 
retary  of  State,  a  letter  to  the  Emperor  of  Japan, 
and  another  to  the  Czar  of  Russia,  suggesting  that 
their  interests  as  individual  nations  and  the  good  of 
the  world  could  be  best  served  by  closing  the  war,  and 
suggested  that  peace  commissions  be  appointed  by 
each  country,  and  that  he  himself  would  lend  his  kind 
offices  in  bringing  about  an  amicable  settlement. 

That  peace  commission  began  its  conference  at 
Portsmouth,  New  Hampshire,  on  August  10th.  After 
about  a  week's  conference  the  commission  came  to  a 
dead-lock  and  President  Roosevelt  used  his  great  per 
sonal  influence  on  the  home  governments  and  broke 
it.  For  this  service  in  securing  peace,  he  was  awarded 
the  Nobel  Peace  Prize,  which  was  $40,000  in  cash, 
which  he  gave  to  a  society  for  aiding  our  American 
soldiers. 

At  a  dinner  given  by  the  Japanese  Club  to  Baron 
Makino,  Ambassador  with  the  Japanese  Peace  Mission, 
just  after  Mr.  Roosevelt's  death,  the  Baron  said:  "Mr. 
Roosevelt  materially  aided  in  the  settlement  of  the 
issues  raised  by  the  Russo-Japanese  War  and  in  the 
amicable  adjustment  of  international  difficulties  grow 
ing  out  of  California's  action  regarding  Japanese 
residents.  When  Japan  had  proved  herself  and  the 
prowess  of  her  soldiers  and  her  navy, ' '  said  the  Baron, 
in  reference  to  the  conflict  with  Russia,  "the  con 
vention  was  called  and  the  conclusion  of  the  terms 
which  brought  about  an  honorable  peace  was  due 
greatly  to  the  broad,  straightforward,  generous  and 
even  noble  attitude  taken  by  President  Roosevelt. 
The  death  of  Colonel  Roosevelt  leaves  a  gap  in  the 
ranks  of  men  who  have  made  the  history  of  the  world. 
As  the  friend  of  Japan  he  had  been  consistent  in  ren- 


NATURALIST  AND  AUTHOR  217 

dering  our  country  valuable  service  which  will  always 
be  appreciated. " 

None  of  the  twelve  labors  of  Hercules  can  compare 
with  this  act  of  seizing  two  powerful  nations  at  war 
with  each  other,  pulling  them  apart  and  persuading 
them  to  live  at  peace  with  one  another. 

SEVENTH — He  wrote  thirty-five  books.  Minerva 
taught  Hercules;  Roosevelt's  wisdom  was  God-given. 
In  spite  of  his  supremely  busy  life,  beside  many  other 
writings,  he  produced  books  which  have  an  important 
place  in  the  libraries  of  our  country  and  in  those  of 
some  other  countries.  The  most  important  are  as 
follows:  Winning  of  the  "West,  1889-96;  History  of 
the  Naval  War  of  1812,  1882;  Hunting  Trips  of  a 
Ranchman,  1885 ;  Life  of  Thomas  Hart  Benton,  1886 ; 
Life  of  Gouveneur  Morris,  1887;  Ranch  Life  and 
Hunting  Trail,  1888;  History  of  New  York,  1890; 
The  Wilderness  Hunter,  1893 ;  American  Ideals  and 
Other  Essays,  1897  ;•  The  Rough  Riders,  1899 ;  Life 
of  Oliver  Cromwell,  1900 ;  The  Strenuous  Life,  1900 ; 
Works  (8  vols.),  1902;  The  Deer  Family,  1902;  Out 
door  Pastimes  of  an  American  Hunter,  1906 ;  Ameri 
can  Ideals  and  Other  Essays;  Good  Hunting,  1907; 
True  Americanism ;  African  and  European  Addresses, 
1910;  African  Game  Trails,  1910;  The  New  National 
ism,  1910;  Realizable  Ideals  (the  Earl  lectures),  1912; 
Conservation  of  Womanhood  and  Childhood,  1912; 
History  as  Literature,  and  Other  Essays,  1913 ;  Theo 
dore  Roosevelt,  an  Autobiography,  1913;  Life  His 
tories  of  African  Game  Animals  (2  vols.),  1914; 
Through  the  Brazilian  Wilderness,  1914 ;  America  and 
the  World  War,  1915;  A  Booklover's  Holidays  in  the 
Open,  1916;  Fear  God,  and  Take  Your  Own  Part, 
1916;  Foes  of  Our  Own  Household,  1917;  National 
Strength  and  International  Duty  (Stafford  Little  lee- 


218  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

tures,  Princeton  Univ.),  1917.  Of  all  his  writing  the 
Winning  of  the  West  is  the  most  ambitious  of  his  ef 
forts  and  the  one  that  will  have  the  longest  life. 

While  Police  Commissioner  we  asked  him  to  give 
us  a  lecture  for  the  reduction  of  the  church  debt.  He 
said  he  was  just  finishing  a  book  on  which  he  had 
been  working  for  years,  on  the  winning  of  the  West, 
a  quotation  from  which  he  could  give  as  a  lecture. 
He  gave  the  lecture.  In  it  he  began  with  the  moral 
and  mental  elements  in  the  making  of  the  new  civiliza 
tion  and  then  spent  the  rest  of  the  hour  on  the  tre 
mendous  importance  of  the  moral  and  religious  ele 
ments  in  the  Winning  of  the  West.  He  paid  the  high 
est  tribute  to  the  pioneer  ministers  of  all  denomina 
tions.  He  said  that  their  movement  westward  kept 
pace  with  the  movement  of  the  frontier,  that  they 
shared  all  the  hardships  in  the  life  of  the  frontiers 
man,  at  the  same  time  ministering  to  that  frontiers 
man's  spiritual  needs,  and  seeing  that  his  pressing 
material  cares  and  the  hard  and  grinding  poverty  of 
his  life  did  not  wholly  extinguish  the  divine  fire 
within  his  soul. 

EIGHTH — He  achieved  wonders  in  nature  study. 
His  knowledge  of  plant  life  was  miraculous.  Theo 
dore  Roosevelt  knew  the  name  of  about  every  tree  in 
the  forest,  the  kind  of  bark,  stem  and  leaf  that  each 
possessed;  the  name  of  every  plant  and  flower,  its 
feature  and  habit  in  this  country  and  in  others.  Al 
most  no  hand  in  the  nation  spared  the  woodsman's 
axe  in  the  destruction  of  our  forests  like  his.  Know 
ing  the  value  of  trees  in  the  preservation  of  the  rivers 
and  fertility  of  the  soil,  and  protection  to  wild  life; 
knowing  also  the  value  of  trees  as  a  source  of  health 
companionship  and  moral  training  to  the  people,  he 
set  apart  one  hundred  and  fifty  national  forests  with 


NATUKALIST  AND  AUTHOR  219 

an  area  of  three  hundred  thousand  square  miles,  five 
great  National  Parks,  four  reservations  for  big  game 
and  twenty-two  reservations  of  American  antiquities. 
The  land  which  during  his  administration  was  set 
apart,  to  the  perpetual  happiness  and  mental  and 
moral  benefit  of  the  people,  amounted  to  an  area 
greater  than  all  of  Germany.  It  was  but  natural 
that  Congress  should  name  one  of  the  greatest  Na 
tional  Parks  of  the  world  after  him.  Some  of  the 
charming  passages  in  literature  are  Eoosevelt's  de 
scriptions  of  the  beauty,  the  fragrance  and  the  value 
of  flowers. 

His  knowledge  of  animal  life  was  just  as  marvelous 
as  that  of  the  vegetable  kingdom.  He  tells  a  story 
himself  in  his  autobiography  that  when  a  small  boy 
he  saw  the  head  of  a  seal  at  the  meat  market  near 
his  house  and  that  he  secured  it  and  made  it  the  ob 
ject  of  study  and  basis  of  the  Roosevelt  museum, 
which  he  and  his  cousins  established  with  the  speci 
mens  which  they  found  near  at  hand.  He  knew  the 
name,  family  and  habit  of  nearly  all  insects,  reptiles, 
fishes,  domestic  and  wild  animals,  of  birds  and  other 
creatures  in  our  land  and  in  some  other  lands.  His 
world-wide  travels  were  largely  to  increase  his  knowl 
edge  of  the  plant  and  animal  life  that  God  has  created. 

From  his  earliest  recollection  to  the  day  of  his 
death  Theodore  Roosevelt  was  passionately  fond  of  the 
birds,  and  for  forty  years  of  his  life  they  had  no  such 
true  and  efficient  friend  as  he.  President  Roosevelt 
thus  paid  a  tribute  to  the  friendly  service  rendered 
by  the  birds  to  man:  "The  cotton  boll-weevil,  which 
has  recently  overspread  the  cotton  belt  of  Texas  and 
is  steadily  extending  its  range,  is  said  to  cause  an 
annual  loss  of  about  $3,000,000.  The  Biological  Sur 
vey  has  ascertained  and  given  wide  publicity  to  the 


220  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

fact  that  at  least  43  kinds  of  birds  prey  upon  this  de 
structive  insect.  It  has  discovered  that  57  species  of 
birds  feed  upon  scale-insects — dreaded  enemies  of  the 
fruit  grower.  It  has  shown  that  woodpeckers  as  a 
class,  by  destroying  the  larvae  of  wood-boring  insects, 
are  so  essential  to  tree  life  that  it  is  doubtful  if  our 
forests  could  exist  without  them.  It  has  shown  that 
cuckoos  and  orioles  are  the  natural  enemies  of  the 
leaf-eating  caterpillars  that  destroy  our  shade  and 
fruit  trees;  that  our  quails  and  sparrows  consume 
annually  hundreds  of  tons  of  seeds  of  noxious  weeds ; 
that  hawks  and  owls  as  a  class  (excepting  the  few 
that  kill  poultry  and  game  birds)  are  markedly  bene 
ficial,  spending  their  lives  in  catching  grasshoppers, 
mice,  and  other  pests  that  prey  upon  the  products  of 
husbandry. ' '  He  secured  fifty-one  reservations  where 
the  wild  birds  on  the  wing  might  find  a  refuge. 

Governor  Roosevelt,  in  a  letter  to  Mr.  Frank  H. 
Chapman  of  the  Audubon  Society,  who  had  thanked 
him  for  signing  a  bill  protecting  birds,  thus  expressed1 
his  value  of  them: 

Half,  and  more  than  half,  the  beauty  of  the  woods  and 
fields  is  gone  when  they  lose  the  harmless  wild  things, 
while  if  we  could  only  ever  get  our  people  to  the  point 
of  taking  a  universal  and  thoroughly  intelligent  interest 
in  the  preservation  of  game  birds  "and  fish,  the  result  would 
be  an  important  addition  to  our  food  supply.  Ultimately, 
people  are  sure  to  realize  that  to  kill  off  all  game  birds 
and  net  out  all  fish  streams  is  not  much  more  sensible  than 
it  would  be  to  kill  off  all  our  milch  cows  and  brood  mares. 

As  for  the  birds  whose  preservation  is  the  special  object 
of  your  Society,  we  should  keep  them  just  as  we  keep 
trees.  They  add  indispensably  to  the  wholesome  beauty 
of  life.  I  would  like  to  see  all  harmless  wild  things,  but 
especially  all  birds,  protected  in  every  way.  I  do  not  under 
stand  how  any  man  or  woman  who  really  loves  nature  can 
fail  to  try  to  exert  all  Influence  in  support  of  such  objects 


NATURALIST  AND  AUTHOR  221 

as  those  of  the  Audubon  Society.  Spring,  would  not  he 
spring  without  bird  songs,  any  more  than  it  would  be 
spring  without  buds  and  flowers,  and  I  only  wish  that  be 
sides  protecting  the  songsters,  the  birds  of  the  grove,  the 
orchard,  the  garden  and  the  meadow,  we  could  also  protect 
the  birds  of  the  seashore  and  of  the  wilderness. 

The  loon  ought  to  be,  and,  under  wise  legislation,  could 
be  a  feature  of  every  Adirondack  lake;  ospreys,  as  every 
one  knows,  can  be  made  the  tamest  of  the  tame,  and  terns 
should  be  as  plentiful  along  our  shores  as  swallows  around 
our  .barns.  A  tanager  or  a  cardinal  makes  a  point  of  glow 
ing  beauty  in  the  green  woods  and  the  cardinal  among  the 
white  snows.  When  the  bluebirds  were  so  nearly  destroyed 
by  the  severe  winter  a  few  seasons  ago,  it  was  like  the 
loss  of  an  old  friend,  or  at  least  like  the  burning  down  ot 
a  familiar  and  dearly  loved  house.  How  immensely  it 
would  add  to  our  forests  if  only  the  logcock  were  still 
found  among  them ! 

The  destruction  of  the  wild  pigeon  and  the  Carolina  paro 
quet  has  meant  a  loss  as  severe  as  if  the  Catskills  or  the 
Palisades  were  taken  away.  When  I  hear  of  the  destruc 
tion  of  a  species  I  feel  just  as  if  all  the  works  of  some 
great  writer  had  perished;  as  if  we  had  lost  all  instead  of 
only  part  of  Polybius  or  Livy. 

At  my  request,  Mr.  John  M.  Parker,  a  manufacturer 
of  New  Orleans,  himself  a  passionate  lover  of  birds, 
wrote  for  me  the  following: 

It  has  been  my  privilege  to  know  Colonel  Theodore  Roose 
velt  intimately  for  a  great  many  years,  not  only  in  Wash 
ington,  at  his  home  at  Sagamore  Hill,  but  on  hunting  trips 
in  Louisiana  and  Mississippi,  and  on  investigation  trips  of 
the  bird  islands  in  the  Gulf  of  Mexico.  No  more  versatile 
man  ever  lived.  There  was  hardly  a  subject  of  discussion 
on  which  he  was  not  well  posted,  and  on  the  numerous 
railroad  and  other  trips  made  with  him,  his  tireless  energy 
and  activity  were  shown  by  the  fact  that  he  was  never 
idle  and  that  when  he  read  he  remembered  with  that  won 
derful  mind  of  his  which  seemed  instantly  to  grasp  essen 
tials  and  never  forgot.  He  was  a  most  omniveroira  reader. 

As  a  naturalist  and  lover  of  animals,  his  intimate  knowl- 


222  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

edge  was  a  surprise  to  all  of  those  who  were  thrown  In 
close  contact  with  him.  Time  after  time  have  I  seen  thla 
illustrated,  and  never  more  strikingly  than  at  my  home  at 
Pass  Christian,  where  we  found  twenty-seven  different  va 
rieties  of  bird  nests  in  the  yard,  among  which  was  that 
of  a  crested  flycatcher.  This  bird  had  already  hatched  and 
with  its  young  was  in  the  yard.  The  Colonel  asked  whether 
I  had  ever  made  a  careful  examination  of  the  nest  of  this 
bird,  as  he  had  never  failed  to  find  a  snake  skin  in  the 
hollow  which  they  invariably  select  for  their  nest.  My 
reply  was,  "No,  but  let's  look  at  this  one  and  see  what's 
in  it,"  and  to  his  great  delight  when  I  pulled  out  the 
straws  and  feather,  there  were  two  snake  skins. 

When  he  made  his  trip  around  the  various  bird  islands, 
men  who  were  naturalists  and  who  had  known  bird  life 
for  years  were  amazed  at  his  intimate  knowledge,  not  only 
of  every  species  of  birds  which  we  found,  but  as  to  their 
nests,  their  habits,  and  even  the  number  of  eggs  they  laid. 

He  was  a  splendid  woodsman,  had  an  excellent  knowledge 
of  direction  and  was  at  his  best  in  camp.  There  was  not 
a  single  trip  on  which  he  did  not  endear  himself  to  every 
one,  and  his  thoroughly  democratic  manner  made  these 
trips  a  pleasure  to  him  and  a  delight  to  those  who  had 
the  privilege  of  being  a  member  of  the  party. 

In  every  sense  of  the  word  he  was  one  of  the  cleanest 
men  I  ever  knew.  He  was  utterly  incapable  of  a  dishonest 
thought;  he  was  an  American  to  the  core,  and  his  splendid 
patriotic  life  should  be  an  inspiration  for  generations  to 
come. 


HEKCULES  CONTINUED— HUNTER— 
EXPLORER— PROGRESSIVE 


CHAPTER  XVII 

HERCULES'  CONTINUED— HUNTER 
EXPLORER— PROGRESSIVE 

THE  ninth  miracle  of  Theodore  Roosevelt  was 
his  record  as  a  mighty  hunter.     Hercules  ex 
celled  in  the  chase;  he  put  an  arrow  through 
the  heart  of  a  deer,  and  killed  a  lion  with  his  club 
now  and  then;  but  as  a  hunter  of  big  game  he  was 
an  amateur  when  compared  with  Roosevelt.     It  is  a 
rule  of  human  nature  and  of  history  that  the  greatest 
workers  have  also  been  the  most  enthusiastic  at  play. 
Roosevelt's  hunting  trips  were  both  a  rest  and  a  tonic 
to  him  in  his  great  achievements. 

The  magnitude  of  the  hunting  spirit  in  him  can  be 
seen  in  the  fact  that  eight  books,  or  almost  one-fourth 
of  all  that  he  wrote,  are  devoted  to  hunting  or  game. 
How  proud  he  was  as  a  boy  at  Harvard  when  he 
killed  his  first  deer  in  the  Adirondacks,  and  of  its 
head  which  he  put  up  in  his  room  as  a  trophy.  He 
tells  this  story  of  the  killing  of  his  first  grizzly  as 
recorded  by  Halstead  in  his  life  of  Roosevelt : 

When  in  the  middle  of  the  thicket  we  crossed  what  was 
almost  a  breastwork  of  fallen  logs,  and  Merrifield,  who  was 
leading,  passed  by  the  upright  stem  of  a  great  pine.  As 
soon  as  he  was  by  it,  he  sank  suddenly  on  one  knee,  turn 
ing  half-round,  his  face  fairly  aflame  with  excitement; 

225 


226  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

and  as  I  strode  past  him,  with  my  rifle  at  the  ready,  there, 
not  ten  steps  off,  was  the  great  bear,  slowly  rising  from 
his  bed  among  the  great  spruces.  He  had  heard  us,  but 
apparently  hardly  knew  exactly  where  or  what  we  were, 
for  he  reared  up  on  his  haunches  sideways  to  us.  Then 
he  saw  us  and  dropped  down  again  on  all  fours,  the  shaggy 
hair  on  his  neck  and  shoulders  seemed  to  bristle  as  he 
turned  toward  us.  As  he  sank  down  on  his  forefeet  I  had 
raised  the  rifle;  his  head  was  bent  slightly  down,  and  when 
I  saw  the  top  of  the  white  head  fairly  between  his  small 
glittering  evil  eyes  I  pulled  the  trigger. 

Half  rising  up,  the  huge  beast  fell  over  on  his  side  In 
the  death  throes,  the  ball  having  gone  into  his  brain,  strik 
ing  fairly  between  the  eyes  as  if  the  distance  had  been 
measured  by  a  carpenter's  rule.  The  whole  thing  was  over 
in  twenty  seconds  from  the  time  I  caught  sight  of  the 
game;  indeed,  it  was  over  so  quickly  that  the  grizzly  did 
not  have  time  to  show  fight  at  all  or  come  a  step  toward 
us.  It  was  the  first  I  had  ever  seen,  and  I  felt  not  a  little 
proud,  as  I  stood  over  the  great  brindled  bulk,  which  lay 
stretched  out  at  length  in  the  cool  shade  of  the  evergreens. 
He  was  a  monstrous  fellow,  much  larger  than  any  I  have 
seen  since,  whether  alive  or  brought  in  dead  by  the  hunters. 
As  near  as  we  could  estimate  (for  of  course  we  had  noth 
ing  with  which  to  weigh  more  than  very  small  portions) 
he  must  have  weighed  about  twelve  hundred  pounds. 

After  this  he  had  more  tragical  experiences  and 
narrow  escapes,  in  one  of  which  an  angry  beast  rushed 
upon  him  so  suddenly  that,  catching  the  limb  of  a 
tree,  he  swung  over  the  back  of  the  grizzly  and  thus 
saved  his  life.  In  his  African  Game  Trails  he  gives 
this  account  of  his  killing  of  the  first  and  second  lions 
in  one  day: 

Right  in  front  of  me,  thirty  yards  off,  there  appeared 
from  behind  the  bushes  which  had  first  screened  him  from 
my  eyes,  the  tawny,  galloping  form  of  a  big  maneless  lion. 
Crack!  the  Winchester  spoke;  and  as  the  soft-nosed  bullet 
ploughed  forward  through  his  flank  the  lion  swerved  so  that 
I  missed  him  with  the  second  shot;  but  my  third  bullet 


HUNTER   AND   EXPLORER  227 

went  through  the  spine  and  forward  into  his  chest.  Down 
he  came,  sixty  yards  off,  his  hind  quarters  dragging,  his 
head  up,  his  ears  back,  his  jaws  open  and  lips  drawn  up  in 
a  prodigious  snarl,  as  he  endeavored  to  turn  to  face  us. 
His  back  was  broken;  but  of  this  we  could  not  at  the 
moment  be  sure,  and  if  it  had  merely  been  grazed,  he  might 
have  recovered,  and  then,  even  though  dying,  his  charge 
might  have  done  mischief.  So  Kermit,  Sir  Alfred  Pease, 
and  I  fired,  almost  together,  into  his  chest.  His  head  sank, 
and  he  died. 

He  makes  this  mention  also  of  the  killing  of  the 
second  lion  that  same  day : 

I  was  still  unable  to  see  the  lion  when  I  knelt,  but  he 
was  now  standing  up,  looking  first  at  one  group  of  horses 
and  then  at  the  other,  his  tail  lashing  to  and  fro,  his  head 
held  low,  and  his  lips  dropped  over  his  mouth  in  peculiar 
fashion,  while  his  harsh  and  savage  growling  rolled  thun 
derously  over  the  plain.  Seeing  Simba  and  me  on  foot, 
he  turned  toward  us,  his  tail  lashing  quicker  and  quicker. 
Resting  my  elbow  on  Simba's  bent  shoulder,  I  took  steady 
aim  and  pressed  the  trigger;  the  bullet  went  in  between 
the  neck  and  shoulder,  and  the  lion  fell  over  on  his  side, 
one  foreleg  in  the  air.  He  recovered  in  a  moment  and  stood 
up,  evidently  very  sick,  and  once  more  faced  me,  growling 
hoarsely.  I  think  he  was  on  the  eve  of  charging.  I  fired 
again  at  once,  and  this  bullet  broke  his  back  just  behind 
the  shoulders;  and  with  the  next  I  killed  him  outright, 
after  we  had  gathered  round  him. 

R.  J.  Cunningham,  Colonel  Roosevelt's  hunting 
companion  in  East  Africa,  tells  this  story  of  the  kill 
ing  of  a  huge  elephant: 

The  Colonel  was  determined  to  get  an  elephant,  and  a 
tusker  at  that.  I  told  him  what  that  meant,  and  how  much 
risk  there  was,  but  he  said  he  was  willing  to  face  it.  Well, 
we  found  an  elephant  in  a  forest  on  Genia  Mountain.  We 
had  been  hunting  for  three  days,  and  it  was  really  hard 
work  for  a  man  of  the  Colonel's  bulk  in  that  heat  and  at 
that  altitude,  11,000  feet.  At  last  I  caught  sight  through 
a  thick  bush  of  an  elephant  hide  and  tusk,  about  thirty-five 


228  THEODORE    ROOSEVELT 

feet  away,  just  enough  to  tell  me  it  was  a  fine  specimen. 
I  pointed  it  out  to  the  Colonel,  and  he  fired  with  complete 
coolness  and  got  the  elephant  in  the  ear  and  dropped  him. 
As  the  shot  went  off  the  forest  all  around  roared  with 
trumpetings.  We  were  in  the  midst  of  a  herd  of  cows  and 
young  bulls,  and  one  of  the  latter  thrust  his  head  through 
the  bushes  right  over  the  Colonel's  head.  I  was  right 
behind  him  and  fired  at  once  and  bowled  it  over.  Then 
I  rushed  up  to  the  Colonel  and  said:  "Are  you  all  right, 
sir?"  But  I  could  see  he  was  before  I  spoke.  He  hadn't 
turned  a  hair.  At  any  moment  the  cows  might  have  blun 
dered  through  the  bush  over  us,  but  he  never  thought  of 
that.  He  went  up  to  the  old  chap  he  had  killed  and  gave 
it  the  coup-de-grdce,  and  then  let  himself  loose.  I  never 
saw  a  man  so  boyishly  jubilant. 

^With  the  utmost  courage,  with  his  companions  he 
hunted  and  slew  the  most  dangerous  wild  beasts 
known  to  man,  such  as  lions,  rhinos,  buffalos,  ele 
phants,  and  leopards.  Some  of  his  experiences  were 
thrilling  and  the  escapes  narrow.  "We  have  in  our 
family  a  trophy  of  this  African  hunting  trip,  a  paper- 
knife  made  out  of  the  skin  of  one  of  the  rhinos  Mr, 
Roosevelt  killed  himself,  which  he  sent  as  a  wedding 
present  to  our  daughter  with  a  beautiful  letter  of 
congratulation  written  in  his  own  tiny  handwriting. 
The  knife  looks  exactly  as  though  it  were  made  oi 
yellow  celluloid. 

Colonel  Roosevelt  went  to  Africa,  not  only  as  a 
hunter  of  big  game,  but  also  as  a  lover  of  nature  and 
an  explorer,  to  secure  scientific  facts  for  permanent 
record. 

Primarily  he  went  out  under  the  auspices  of  the 
Smithsonian  Institution  at  Washington  to  secure  spe 
cimens  of  fauna  and  flora  of  that  continent,  and  our 
Hercules  planned  the  expedition  in  great  magnitude, 
taking  with  him  as  companions  scientific  men  to  col 
lect,  secure,  prepare  and  transport  these  specimens. 


HUNTER  AND   EXPLORER  229 

Besides  he  had  an  army  of  between  three  and  four 
hundred  savages.  The  nature  and  extent  of  the  ex 
pedition  of  this  modern  Hercules  can  be  seen  by  the 
following  official  report  to  the  government : 

KHARTUM,  March  15,  1910. 
To  the  Eon.  Charles  Walcott,  Secretary  of  the  Smithsonian: 

SIB:  I  have  the  honor  to  report  that  the  Smithsonian 
African  expedition  which  was  entrusted  to  my  charge  has 
now  completed  its  work.  Full  reports  will  be  made  later 
by  the  three  naturalists,  Messrs.  Mearns,  Heller  and  Lor- 
ing.  I  send  this  preliminary  statement  to  summarize  what 
has  been  done;  the  figures  given  are  substantially  accurate, 
but  may  have  to  be  changed  slightly  in  the  final  reports. 

We  landed  at  Mombasa  on  April  21,  1909,  and  reached 
Khartum  on  March  21,  1910.  On  landing  we  were  joined 
by  Messrs.  R.  J.  Cunningham  and  Leslie  J.  Tarlton;  the 
former  was  with  us  throughout  our  entire  trip,  the  latter 
until  we  left  East  Africa,  and  both  worked  as  zealously  and 
efficiently  for  the  success  of  the  expedition  as  any  other 
member  thereof. 

We  spent  eight  months  in  British  East  Africa.  We  col 
lected  carefully  in  various  portions  of  the  Athi  and  Kapiti 
plains,  in  the  Sotik  and  round  Lake  Naivasha.  Messrs. 
Mearns  and  Loring  made  a  thorough  biological  survey  of 
Mt.  Kenia  while  the  rest  of  the  party  skirted  its  western 
base,  went  to  and  up  the  Guaso.  Nyero,  and  later  visited 
the  Guas  Ngishu  region  and  both  sides  of  the  Rift  valley. 
Messrs.  Kermit  Roosevelt  and  Tarlton  went  to  the  Laikipia 
Plateau  and  Lake  Hamington,  and  Dr.  Mearns  and  Mr. 
Kermit  Roosevelt  made  separate  trips  to  the  coast  region 
near  Mombasa.  On  December  19th  the  expedition  left  East 
Africa,  crossed  Uganda  and  went  down  the  White  Nile. 

North  of  Wadelai  we  stopped  and  spent  over  three  weeks 
in  Lado,  and  from  Gondokoro  Mr.  Kermit  Roosevelt  and  I 
again  crossed  into  the  Lado,  spending  eight  or  ten  daya 
in  the  neighborhood  of  Rejaf.  At  Gondokoro  we  were  met 
toy  the  steamer  which  the  Sirdar,  with  great  courtesy,  had 
put  at  our  disposal.  On  the  way  to  Khartum  we  made 
collections  at  Lake  No  and  on  the  Bahr-el-Ghazel  and  Bar- 
el-Zeraf.  We  owe  our  warmest  thanks  for  the  generous 
courtesy  shown  us  and  the  aid  freely  given  us  not  only 


230  THEODORE    ROOSEVELT 

by  the  Sirdar,  but  by  all  the  British  officials  in  East  Africa, 
Uganda  and  the  Sudan  and  by  the  Belgian  officials  in  the 
Lado,  and  this,  of  course,  means  we  are  also  indebted  to 
the  home  governments  of  England  and  Belgium. 

On  the  trip  Mr.  Heller  has  prepared  1,020  specimens  of 
mammals,  the  majority  of  large  size;  Mr.  Loring  has  pre 
pared  3,1G3  and  Dr.  Mearns  714,  a  total  of  4,897  mammals. 
Of  birds,  Dr.  Mearns  has  prepared  nearly  3,100,  Mr.  Loring 
899  and  Mr.  Heller  about  50,  a  total  of  about  4,000  birds. 
Of  reptiles  and  batrachians,  Messrs.  Mearns,  Loring  and 
Heller  collected  about  2,000.  Of  fishes,  about  500  were 
collected.  Dr.  Mearns  collected  marine  fishes  near  Mom 
basa  and  fresh  water  fishes  elsewhere  in  British  East  Africa, 
and  -he  «and  Cunningham  collected  fishes  in  the  White 
Kile.  This  makes  in  all  of  vertebrates:  Mammals,  4,897; 
birds,  about  4,000;  reptiles  and  batrachians,  about  2,000; 
fishes,  about  500;  total,  11,397. 

The  invertebrates  were  collected  carefully  by  Dr.  Mearns, 
with  some  assistance  from  Messrs.  Cunningham  and  Ker- 
mit  Roosevelt. 

A  few  marine  shells  were  collected  near  Mombasa  and 
land  and  freshwater  shells  throughout  the  regions  visited, 
as  well  as  crabs,  beetles,  millipeda  and  other  invertebrates. 
Several  thousand  plants  were  collected  throughout  the  re 
gions  visited  by  Dr.  Mearns,  who  employed  and  trained 
for  the  work  a  Wunyamuezi  named  Makangarri,  who  soon 
learned  how  to  make  very  good  specimens  and  turned  out 
an  excellent  man  in  every  way. 

Anthropological  materials  were  gathered  by  Dr.  Mearns 
with  some  assistance  from  others;  a  collection  was  con 
tributed  by  Major  Ross,  an  American  in  the  government 
service  at  Nairobi. 

I  have  the  honor  to  be, 

Very  truly  yours, 

THEODOKE  ROOSEVELT. 

In  1913  Mr.  Roosevelt  made  a  tour  of  South  Amer 
ica  in  the  interest  of  literature  and  political  science. 
And  in  1914  he  went  back  to  South  America  to  deliver 
some  lectures  and  make  a  tour  of  explorations  which 
he  had  had  in  mind  for  years  seeking  the  undiscovered 


HUNTER  AND  EXPLORER  231 

portion  of  the  River  of  Doubt.  He  explored  the  River 
of  Doubt  for  six  hundred  miles,  placing  it  distinctly 
upon  the  map  of  the  world  for  the  first  time,  for  the 
•jungles  were  so  thick  that  often  the  exploring  party 
had  to  cut  their  path  through  with  axes  and  the 
region  was  so  deadly  that  it  is  said  no  white  man  can 
live  in  it.  The  hero  feared  nothing,  dared  every  dan 
ger,  in  his  determination  to  find  the  great  geograph 
ical  fact.  In  recognition  of  this  discovery  the  Brazil 
ian  government  renamed  the  river,  "Rio  Teodore" 
(Theodore  River). 

TENTH — Mr.  Roosevelt  after  his  African  hunting 
trip  addressed  some  of  the  greatest  universities  of  the 
world,  including  those  of  Oxford,  Cambridge,  Paris, 
Berlin,  and  received  honorary  degrees  from  Cairo, 
Christiana,  Oxford,  Cambridge  and  Berlin.  One  of 
the  greatest  wonders  of  the  world  was  the  manner 
in  which  the  audiences,  composed  of  the  most  distin 
guished  men  of  the  nations,  listened  to  his  messages 
and  the  credit  they  gave  him  for  reliable  scientific 
information  on  the  subjects  which  he  treated.  His 
courage  led  him  to  say  many  things  at  right  angles 
to  the  sentiment  felt  by  the  hosts — as  when  he  re 
buked  race  suicide  in  his  address  at  the  University 
at  Paris.  It  was  while  on  this  trip  that  he  made  his 
celebrated  address  severely  criticizing  England's  pol 
icy  in  Egypt. 

ELEVENTH — He  performed  the  miracle  of  the  pro 
gressive  campaign.  After  serving  out  three  years  and 
one-half  of  President  McKinley  's  unexpired  term,  Mr. 
Roosevelt  was  re-elected  President  of  the  United 
States  in  1904  by  the  largest  popular  majority  which 
had  ever  been  given  a  candidate  for  that  office.  And 
retiring  from  his  seven  and  one-half  years  of  service 
he  announced  that  he  would  make  a  hunting  trip  to 


232  THEODORE    ROOSEVELT 

Africa  and  collect  specimens  for  the  Smithsonian  In 
stitution.  In  response  to  a  letter  protesting  that  such 
a  trip  had  in  it  so  many  perils  that  I  hoped  he  would 
not  make  it,  and  insisting  that  a  life  so  valuable  as 
his  to  his  country  should  not  be  subjected  to  such 
extraordinary  perils,  he  wrote  me  that  there  were 
several  reasons  for  his  trip.  He  had  long  desired  such 
a  hunting  trip  for  big  game ;  and  he  was  also  anxious 
to  gather  scientific  data  with  reference  to  the  animal 
and  plant  life  of  that  continent. 

He  said  that  he  had  been  instrumental  in  the  nom 
ination  and  election  of  Mr.  Taft  and  that  he  thought 
it  would  be  a  fair  thing  to  the  new  administration, 
and  to  the  people  who  had  elected  it,  to  get  out  of 
the  country  and  a  long  way  from  it  and  leave  no 
grounds  for  believing  that  he  had  anything  whatever 
to  do  with  the  administration. 

On  -his  return  from  the  hunting  trip  in  Africa  the 
reception  accorded  him  was  one  of  the  most  stupen 
dous  and  glorious  ever  given  to  any  man.  But  he 
found  that  the  Republican  party  was  getting  into  a 
snarl,  that  the  insurgents  were  increasing  in  number 
and  influence.  He  refused  to  take  sides  openly  for 
quite  a  while,  but  at  last  sided  with  the  insurgents 
and  became  the  candidate  of  that  faction  for  the  nom 
ination  for  the  Presidency  in  1912  against  President 
Taft,  making  his  famous  statement,  "My  hat  is  in 
the  ring." 

The  party  machinery,  however,  was  in  the  hands 
of  the  regular  faction,  and  in  the  seating  of  contest 
ing  delegations,  the  Republican  National  Committee 
created  a  majority  for  Mr.  Taft.  The  insurgents 
left  the  convention  hall  in  Chicago  in  a  body  and  went 
over  to  the  Orchestra  Hall,  where  the  Progressive 
party  was  officially  organized  as  a  protest  against  the 


1,  N.  Y. 


BOOSEVELT,   THE   AMERICAN,    AMID   AMERICA'S    RUGGED  GRANDEUB, 
YOSEMITE,    SPRING    OF    1903. 


HUNTER  AND  EXPLORER  233 

action  of  the  Republican  committee.     This  was  in 
June. 

The  fifth  day  of  August  was  set  as  the  time  for  a 
national  Progressive  convention,  and  at  that  conven 
tion  Theodore  Roosevelt  was  named  for  the  Presi 
dency,  to  run  against  Mr.  Wilson,  Governor  of  New 
Jersey,  leading  the  Democrats,  and  Taft,  running  to 
succeed  himself. 

Toward  the  close  of  Mr.  Roosevelt's  administration 
I  said  to  the  President,  "  Hosts  of  friends  over  the 
country  want  you  to  run  again ;  your  hold  upon  the 
leadership  of  the  Republican  party  is  absolute.  Your 
closest  friends  want  to  know  whether  you  desire  to 
run  again."  He  replied,  "I  meant  exactly  what  I 
said  the  night  I  was  elected,  that  I  would  not  be  a 
candidate  to  succeed  myself.  I  have  had  all  the  honor 
there  is  in  the  office,  I  have  accomplished  much  of 
what  I  undertook  to  do,  and  the  people  have  treated 
me  with  such  consideration  and  affection  that  I  am 
willing  now  to  yield  my  office  to  some  one  else. J '  He 
continued,  "Besides,  I  am  very,  very  fond  of  nature, 
and  would  like  to  pursue  extensively  my  nature  study. 
I  am  very,  very  fond  of  reading  and  of  writing  books. 
I  should  like  to  spend  some  solid  years  in  the  field  of 
literature.  I  am  very  fond  of  hunting  and  would 
like  to  have  longer  periods  of  rest  and  recreation  in 
that  way.  No,  I  shall  not  run  again.  I  am  positive 
on  that  subject,  and  you  are  welcome  to  say  to  all  the 
boys  that  are  closest  to  you  that  I  am  in  earnest  and 
will  not  take  the  nomination." 

.  Then  he  paused,  and  with  a  voice  somewhat  softened 
he  said,  "I  will  tell  you  this  in  strictest  confidence. 
There  is  only  one  condition  under  which  I  could  ever 
be  induced  to  enter  the  race  for  the  Presidency 
again."  Deeply  anxious,  I  inquired,  "And  what  is 


234  THEODORE    ROOSEVELT 

that?"  He  answered,  " Frankly  this.  If  the  Repub 
lican  party  were  ever  to  go  back  on  the  progressive 
policies  which  are  so  necessary  to  the  highest  pros 
perity  of  the  country,  and  to  which  I  have  devoted 
my  life,  if  it  should  become  necessary  I  might  be 
compelled  to  take  the  field  again  and  try  to  keep  the 
party  in  the  right  track.  I  do  not  expect  any  such 
condition  to  arise.  I  have  every  reason  to  believe 
that  the  leaders  of  the  party  recognize  the  wisdom 
and  the  virtue  of  the  policies  for  which  the  party 
now  stands;  that  they  will  not  reverse  it  and  invite 
party  defeat  and  national  injury.  I  do  not  want  it 
to  occur.  If  things  go  well,  as  I  fully  expect  them 
to  do,  I  shall  give  the  rest  of  my  life  up  to  the  pur 
suits  and  joys  of  civil  life,  at  the  same  time  doing 
everything  in  my  power  for  the  happiness  and  pros 
perity  of  my  fellow-countrymen." 

Seated  on  the  porch  at  Sagamore  Hill  after  the 
Progressive  convention  had  been  held  in  Chicago  in 
August,  1912,  he  called  my  attention  to  what  he  had 
said  to  me  in  the  White  House,  and  said,  "  Precisely 
the  thing  I  had  hoped  would  not  occur  has  occurred, 
and  I  feel  compelled  under  the  circumstances  to  enter 
the  field  again."  I  said  to  him,  "I  am  so  sorry  you 
did  not  get  the  nomination  of  the  Republican  conven 
tion.  You  no  doubt  felt  justified  in  running  inde 
pendently  as  a  protest  against  what  you  counted  a 
wrong,  but  to  me  the  chances  for  your  success  seem 
slim.  The  Republican  party  that  has  ruled  the  coun 
try  for  fifty  years  is  split  in  two.  The  Democrats 
are  strong.  You  have  no  press,  no  party  organization, 
no  party  history,  no  party  loyalty  to  begin  with, 
•where  millions  of  votes  are  required.  But  I  intend  to 
follow  you  in  this  new  movement.  It  breaks  my  heart 
to  sever  party  ties,  but  I  have  found  you  right  and 


HUNTER  AND   EXPLORER  235 

safe  as  a  leader  and  I  am  going  in  the  boat  with  you. 
I  do  not  know  where  I  am  going,  but  I  know  I  am 
going  somewhere,  and  I  am  going  somewhere  mighty 
fast." 

At  this  he  broke  out  into  a  loud,  hearty  laugh  and 
said,  "  Right  you  are,  my  friend,  we  are  all  going 
somewhere,  and  we  are  going  there  mighty  fast." 

"Now  tell  me,"  I  continued,  "for  you  can  see  so 
much  further  than  the  rest,  is  there  a  ghost  of  a 
chance  of  winning  out?" 

"It  is  so  early  in  the  contest,"  he  replied,  "that  it 
is  impossible  to  foretell  with  any  certainty,  but  I  con 
sider  we  have  a  fighting  chance." 

"Will  you  get  a  single  electoral  vote?"  I  asked. 

"Oh,  yes,"  he  said,  "a  good  many  of  them."  He 
continued,  "The  race  is  between  Wilson  and  myself; 
if  Wilson  shall  lead  me  I  will  be  a  very  decent 
second."  And  so  he  was  with  his  four  million,  one 
hundred  and  twenty-six  thousand  and  twenty,  to  Mr. 
Wilson's  six  million,  two  hundred  and  eighty-six  thou 
sand,  two  hundred  and  fourteen  votes,  which  was  one 
of  the  most  monumental  personal  victories  any  man 
ever  had. 

During  this  campaign  perhaps  the  most  heroic  act 
of  his  life  was  performed.  It  was  when  he  made  a 
speech  of  half-an-hour's  length  just  after  he  had  been 
shot  by  an  assassin  in  Milwaukee,  October  14,  1912. 
John  Schrank,  who  had  followed  him  from  city  to 
city  with  the  intention  of  killing  him,  waited  for 
the  Colonel's  car  at  the  depot  in  Milwaukee,  and  as 
he  was  about  to  enter  an  automobile  to  go  to  the 
meeting,  pointed  a  pistol  at  his  heart,  Just  then  the 
crowd  commenced  to  yell,  "Hello,  Teddy!"  and  the 
Colonel  threw  up  his  hand  in  recognition,  as  was  his 
custom,  raising  the  gun  out  of  its  course,  which  sent 


236  THEODORE    ROOSEVELT 

the  bullet  through  his  spectacle  case  in  Ms  breast 
pocket,  through  the  manuscripts  of  several  speeches 
which  he  had  in  his  pocket,  the  web  of  his  suspenders, 
and  was  deflected  from  his  heart,  which  would  cer 
tainly  have  been  pierced  had  it  not  been  for  the  wave 
of  the  Colonel's  hand. 

Of  course  the  friends  insisted  on  driving  the  Colonel 
to  a  hospital  and  calling  the  meeting  off.  He  would 
not  listen  to  the  proposition,  but  ordered  the  chauf 
feur  to  drive  to  the  hall  at  once.  When  he  came  upon 
the  platform  of  the  hall  his  friends  fairly  fought  him 
to  keep  him  from  making  his  speech,  but  he  waved 
them  back  with  his  strong  arms  and  said  he  would 
make  the  speech  and  that  the  wound  could  be  looked 
after  later.  He  would  not  even  allow  a  surgeon  to 
examine  the  wound.  He  began  his  speech  by  saying, 
"Ladies  and  gentlemen,  you  will  pardon  me  if  I  cut 
my  remarks  somewhat  short,  as  the  fact  is  I  have 
been  shot."  Some  people  laughed  and  some  jeered, 
and  most  of  them  were  startled  beyond  measure  at  the 
announcement.  In  the  part  of  the  speech  referring 
to  himself  he  said: 

"I  do  not  care  a  rap  about  being  shot,  not  a  rap. 
The  bullet  is  in  me  now,  so  that  I  cannot  make  a  very 
long  speech.  But  I  will  try  my  best.  First  of  all  I 
want  to  say  this  about  myself.  I  have  altogether  too 
many  important  things  to  think  of  to  pay  any  heed  or 
feel  any  concern  over  my  own  death.  Now  I  would 
not  speak  to  you  insincerely  within  five  minutes  of 
being  shot.  I  am  telling  you  the  literal  truth  when 
I  say  that  my  concern  is  for  many  other  things. 

"I  want  you  to  understand  that  I  am  ahead  of 
the  game  anyway.  No  man  has  had  a  happier  life 
than  I  have  had — a  happy  life  in  every  way.  I  have 
been  able  to  do  certain  things  that  I  greatly  wished 


HUNTER  AND   EXPLORER  237 

to  do,  and  I  am  interested  in  doing  other  things." 
His  voice  became  somewhat  weak  at  the  last,  but  he 
finished  the  speech  as  he  had  intended  to  make  it. 
The  annals  of  human  heroism  scarcely  furnished  a 
parallel  to  this,  standing  in  his  shoes  full  of  blood 
and  delivering  a  speech  to  the  living  which  in  all 
possibility  or  probability  would  be  his  death  message. 
This  one  act  of  heroism  equals  all  of  the  labors  of  the 
ancient  Hercules  put  together. 

When  the  World  War  came  into  view,  feeling  the 
necessity  of  dropping  all  partisan  considerations,  he 
returned  to  the  Republican  party,  rolling  up  his 
sleeves  and  working  vigorously  for  Mr.  Hughes  for 
the  Presidency.  He  said  to  me  that  he  never  al 
lowed  any  personal  grievance  to  interfere  with  his 
actions  for  the  public  good,  and  that  as  the  life  of 
the  nation  was  at  stake  he  buried  all  grievances  and 
was  willing  to  take  the  hand  of  fellowship  of  those 
who  had  prevented  his  nomination.  And  the  very 
men  who  had  "steam-rollered"  him  joined  with  the 
progressive  faction  of  the  party  in  entrusting  to  his 
hands  the  national  leadership  of  the  Republican 
party.  It  is  a  question  which  is  the  greater  victory, 
to  have  made  such  a  record  as  a  progressive  candi 
date  or  to  have  manifested  the  magnanimity  which  he 
did  toward  those  in  his  party  who  had  opposed  him 
so  bitterly. 

Mr.  Roosevelt,  while  a  strict  partisan,  was  above 
all  a  patriot.  When  he  headed  the  Progressive  ticket 
many  Democrats  voted  for  him.  As  a  rule  the  rank 
and  file  of  the  Democrats  of  this  country  always  had 
the  highest  respect  for  Mr.  Roosevelt  and  large  num 
bers  of  them  loved  him.  At  the  time  of  his  death  the 
Democrats  of  the  nation  seemed  to  have  suffered  as 
deep  sorrow  as  the  Republicans. 


238  THEODORE    ROOSEVELT 

TWELVE — He  was  a  giant  in  the  World's  War. 
Theodore  Roosevelt  was  responsible  for  stirring  up  the 
national  spirit  in  the  only  wars  we  have  had  since 
Lincoln's  time,  the  Spanish- American  and  the  present 
World  War.  More  than  any  other  man,  he  realized 
that  the  devastation  of  Belgium  and  the  sinking  of 
the  Lusitania  were  crimes  against  humanity  and  our 
own  government  and  demanded  that  they  be  avenged 
at  whatever  cost.  His  tremendous  intellect  caused  the 
nation,  which  desired  peace  and  was  determined  to 
have  it,  to  realize  that  there  was  a  just  cause  for  war 
for  the  preservation  of  the  honor  and  life  of  our  own 
nation  and  the  liberty  and  peace  of  the  world.  He 
showed  his  patriotic  faith  by  his  work  in  giving  all 
he  had  to  the  success  of  this  conflict,  and  in  one  of 
his  last  messages  to  the  public  he  said,  "  There  is 
room  in  this  country  for  but  one  flag." 

The  Hercules  of  mythology  had  his  faults,  but  the 
world  has  not  time  or  disposition  to  look  or  dwell 
upon  them.  It  only  remembers  his  mighty  power,  his 
rugged  virtue  and  his  love  and  service  for  his 
country. 

Theodore  Roosevelt  had  his  faults,  certainly  he  did, 
for  he  was  human ;  only  one  man  ever  lived  who  was 
without  fault,  and  He  was  God.  It  was  the  singularly 
human  element,  that  was  liable  to  err,  that  made  him 
so  immensely  popular.  A  faultless  angel  could  never 
have  gotten  elected  to  any  office  which  Colonel  Roose 
velt  ever  filled.  The  people  want  some  one  like  them 
selves,  capable  of  getting  mad  once  in  a  while  when 
it  is  necessary,  and  of  fighting  desperately  when  a 
just  cause  arises. 

It  must  be  remembered,  however,  that  the  things 
that  were  most  severely  criticized  in  him,  and  which 
his  closest  friends  regretted  at  the  time,  proved  to 


HUNTER  AND   EXPLORER  239 

be  the  strongest  points  in  his  plans  and  administra 
tion.  When  he  fought  the  encroachments  of  the 
money  power  two-thirds  of  the  people  thought  he  was 
driving  the  nation  into  bankruptcy.  But  the  people 
soon  learned  that  he  was  right,  and  the  rich  men 
themselves  said  he  must  go  to  the  front  again  to  save 
the  nation  from  financial  collapse.  When  everybody 
was  for  peace  he  was  for  war.  After  a  while  the 
nation  found  that  he  was  right  and  it  was  wrong 
and  followed  his  advice.  Most  men  saw  only  one 
little  section  of  the  truth,  but  he  had  eyes  with  which 
he  saw  around  the  whole  sphere  of  truth. 

He  had  faults  to  be  sure,  but  I  was  so  close  to  him 
that  I  did  not  see  them.  He  had  such  a  superb  per 
sonality  that  I  did  not  stop  to  see  whether  he  had  a 
twisted  little  finger  nail  on  his  left  hand  or  a  mole 
on  his  neck.  I  have  not  dwelt  on  his  faults;  others 
will  likely  do  that.  Some  critics  may  not  have  their 
intellect  colored  with  love  as  mine  is ;  some  biograph 
ers  may  have  a  muck  rake  in  their  hand ;  some  may  be 
so  prejudiced  that  they  will  underestimate  him ;  some 
will  be  brutally  frank,  like  Froude  in  writing  of 
Carlyle,  and  become  his  slanderers  rather  than  biog 
raphers,  but  the  Theodore  Roosevelt  I  knew  had  so 
many  strong  points  and  so  many  virtues  that  I  only 
have  space  for  these  in  this  record. 

Hercules  was  a  very  devout  man.  He  was  poisoned 
to  death  by  accident  in  the  very  act  of  worship.  Real 
izing  that  he  had  to  die  he  called  upon  Jupiter  for 
protection.  He  then  coolly  prepared  for  his  exit  from 
the  world.  He  erected  a  large  funeral  pile  on  Mount 
Oeta,  and  calmly  directed  Philoctetes  to  set  it  on  fire 
when  he  had  ascended  it.  Jupiter,  with  the  approba 
tion  of  the  gods,  suddenly  surrounded  the  pile  with 
smoke,  and  Hercules,  after  his  mortal  parts  were 


240  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

totally  consumed,  was  carried  up  to  heaven  in  a  char 
iot  drawn  by  four  horses,  amidst  peals  of  thunder, 
and  his  friends  raised  an  altar  where  the  burning 
pile  had  stood.  His  worship  became  general,  and  his 
temples,  which  were  scattered  everywhere,  were  the 
most  magnificent  that  could  be  found  in  the  world. 

Colonel  Roosevelt,  quite  a  while  ago,  picked  out  the 
place  in  the  little  cemetery  near  Sagamore  Hill  where 
his  mortal  remains  should  lie.  I  went  out  to  visit  the 
grave  of  my  friend  the  other  day.  Close  by  the  grave 
was  a  little  tent  used  by  the  returned  soldier  boys  of 
Oyster  Bay,  who  guarded  this  precious  dust.  The 
young  men  told  me  that  on  one  occasion  5,000  had 
visited  the  grave  in  one  day,  and  that  John  Bur 
roughs,  the  celebrated  naturalist,  and  Bill  Sewall,  Mr. 
Roosevelt's  guide  and  life-long  hunting  companion, 
had  visited  the  grave  with  deep  emotion;  and  that  a 
representative  of  the  Japanese  government  had  a  few 
days  before  gone  through  some  ceremony  of  religious 
worship  and  had  craved  the  privilege  of  carrying  a 
handful  of  dust,  as  a  sacred  relic,  back  to  his  home 
in  Japan.  The  flowers  were  all  faded,  the  frames  that 
held  them  were  exposed,  but  their  story  was  there; 
there  was  the  wreath  of  the  Rough  Riders  of  the 
West,  one  of  a  colored  church  in  the  South,  one  from 
a  French  general  tied  with  a  French  flag,  one  from 
his  brother  Masons,  one  from  the  President  of  the 
United  States,  and  just  under  it  was  a  bunch  of 
pussy  willows  picked  by  the  little  children  of  the 
Cove  School.  The  faded  flowers  and  leaves  were  sym 
bols  only  of  the  mortal  part  that  rested  in  the  tomb. 
The  spirit  of  Theodore  Roosevelt  was  taken  to  heaven 
in  the  chariot  of  righteousness.  The  evergreens  in 
the  cemetery  lot,  untouched  by  the  frost  and  snow, 
were  but  the  symbol  of  his  immortality.  While  stand- 


HUNTER  AND   EXPLORER  241 

ing  there  some  voices  were  heard.  This  one  from  the 
great  hero  who  gave  the  Christian  civilization  to 
Europe  and  America,  "I  have  fought  a  good  fight,  I 
have  finished  my  course,  I  have  kept  the  faith :  Hence 
forth  there  is  laid  up  for  me  a  crown  of  righteous 
ness,  which  the  Lord,  the  righteous  judge,  shall  give 
me  at  that  day:  and  not  to  me  only,  but  unto  all 
them  also  that  love  his  appearing."  And  then  came 
these  words  of  his  Master  for  whom  he  suffered 
martyrdom,  "In  my  Father's  house  are  many  man 
sions  :  if  it  were  not  so,  I  would  have  told  you.  I  go 
to  prepare  a  place  for  you.  And  if  I  go  and  pre 
pare  a  place  for  you,  I  will  come  again,  and  receive 
you  unto  Myself;  that  where  I  am,  there  ye  may  be 
also." 


SAGAMOEE  HILL 


CHAPTER   XVIII 
SAGAMORE     HILL 

THE  other  day  I  motored  out  to  Sagamore  Hill ; 
the  visit  was  very  different  from  earlier  ones. 
The  house  was  closed,  the  children  had  gone  out 
into  life,  the  wife  who  had  so  much  to  do  with  the 
character,  happiness  and  success  of  her  husband  had 
gone  to  France  to  visit  the  grave  of  Quentin.  As  I 
came  up  the  hill  a  feeling  of  insufferable  sadness 
came  over  me.  As  I  looked  at  the  vacant  house  from 
which  the  strong  man  had  gone  and  the  stillness  of 
the  house,  once  the  home  of  about  the  happiest  and 
liveliest  family  in  America,  my  eyes  moistened.  I 
felt  that  I  should  never  see  the  face  of  my  friend 
again,  or  enjoy  his  sweet  companionship  in  that  house 
and  on  that  porch.  But  suddenly  the  spirit  of  Roose 
velt  came  to  me — that  of  courage  and  hope.  And  a 
light  shown  about  me  and  I  felt  that  the  ground  on 
which  I  stood  was  holy  ground,  because  it  had  been 
sanctified  by  his  footsteps.  I  did  not  feel  so  much 
like  crying  as  I  did  like  singing  a  psalm  of  thanks 
giving  that  he  had  ever  come  into  my  life  and  that  the 
world  had  been  so  blessed  by  him.  I  stopped  at  the 
old  elm  tree  at  the  corner  of  the  porch  which  the  Col 
onel  loved  almost  as  a  person,  and  through  whose 

245 


246  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

beauty  and  refreshment  he  so  often  communed  with 
his  Maker.  He  loved  it  so  dearly,  and  was  so  afraid 
that  the  storms  might  hurt  it,  that  he  had  the  great 
lower  branches  fastened  with  iron  stays.  He  called 
it  his  weeping  elm. 

I  went  around  to  the  other  side  of  the  house  and 
looked  down  into  the  thick  woods  where  he  went  so 
often  to  chop.  And  I  seemed  to  hear  the  strokes  of 
his  axe  and  the  crash  of  the  tall  tree  as  it  fell.  I 
looked  down  into  the  field  in  which  he  worked  at  har 
vest  time  as  vigorously  as  any  of  his  farmhands  and 
thought  of  how  he  used  to  toss  the  hay  with  his  strong 
arms  up  to  the  man  on  the  top  of  the  wagon.  I  saw 
the  cows  in  the  pasture  of  which  he  was  so  fond.  I 
breathed  the  perfume  of  the  flowers  that  were  so  de 
licious  to  him,  and  listened  to  the  song  of  the  birds 
that  knew  him  and  gave  him  a  continuous  serenade. 
I  went  down  to  the  stable  and  there  met  a  very  re 
markable  character,  the  Colonel's  chauffeur,  Charles 
Lee.  I  knew  how  much  Colonel  Roosevelt  trusted  and 
loved  him  and  I  said  to  him,  "I  know  a  good  many 
things  about  Mr.  Roosevelt,  but  you  were  with  him 
so  much  that  I  thought  you  might  tell  me  some  things 
about  him  I  had  never  heard. ' y 

He  said  to  me,  "You  need  not  introduce  yourself 
to  me,  for  I  have  seen  you  and  the  Colonel  together 
so  often  and  I  will  gladly  tell  you  something  about 
him. ' '  ' '  Come  indoors, ' '  he  said, ' '  and  sit  down  and  I 
will  talk  to  you."  I  said  to  him,  "This  piece  of  board 
that  comes  out  from  the  wall  on  the  porch  is  about 
the  right  width  and  height  for  a  writing  table,  and 
so  if  you  will  give  me  a  chair  I  will  sit  down  here 
and  make  notes  on  this  writing  tablet,  which  I  desire 
to  put  into  the  book  I  am  writing  on  the  Colonel." 

He  went  into  the  garage  and  came  out  with  a  chair 


SAGAMORE   HILL  247 

in  his  hand  and  set  it  down  by  this  improvised  writ 
ing-desk,  and  as  he  did  so  said,  "We  will  begin  with 
the  chair  in  which  you  are  seated.  That  was  the 
Colonel's  favorite  study  chair.  In  it  he  did  much  of 
his  reading  and  writing ;  I  think  it  was  the  last  chair 
in  which  he  sat  downstairs.  He  said  a  little  while 
before  his  death,  'Lee,  you  have  been  with  me  a  long 
time  and  a  true  friend;  I  am  going  to  give  you  my 
chair  that  I  love  so  well,  to  remember  me  by/  And 
that  is  the  chair.  It  is  precious  to  me.  There  is  not 
money  enough  in  the  Oyster  Bay  bank  to  buy  it." 
"Lee,  how  long  were  you  with  the  Colonel?"  I  asked. 
"Seventeen  years,"  he  replied.  Then  I  said,  "You 
were  a  lucky  man  and  a  rich  man  to  have  been  so 
close  to  so  great  and  good  a  man  for  such  a  length  of 
time." 

He  answered,  "I  certainly  appreciate  my  oppor 
tunities  and  blessings  in  my  relation  to  him.  My 
employment  with  him  began  while  he  was  in  the 
White  House.  I  was  counted  quite  a  driver  of  horses, 
and  he  selected  me  as  his  coachman,  for  they  used 
horses  more  than  cars  at  that  time.  I  drove  a  carriage 
and  two  horses,  except  once  a  year  when  I  drove  four 
horses — on  Inauguration  Day."  I  said,  "Do  you 
mean  to  say  that  you  drove  him  in  his  carriage  on 
Inauguration  Day?"  "I  certainly  did,"  he  replied, 
"I  had  four  fine  .black  horses  and  I  was  the  proudest 
man  in  Washington  as  I  drove  the  President  that 
day."  "Well,  then,"  I  said,  "you  know  something 
about  horses."  "Let's  go  back  into  the  stable  here 
and  look  at  some  of  the  horses. ' '  He  took  me  out  and 
showed  me  a  line  of  empty  stalls,  saying  with  a  sad 
voice,  "The  man  that  rode  them  is  gone,  and  it  made 
Mrs.  Roosevelt  so  sad  as  she  looked  at  the  horses  the 
Colonel  loved  so  well  that  we  sold  them  all. 


248  THEODORE    EOOSEVELT 

'  *  Mr.  Roosevelt  was  devoted  to  his  horses ;  he  was  a 
splendid  rider — sat  to  the  saddle  perfectly — had  easy 
control  of  his  horse  and  enjoyed  riding,  as  a  sport 
and  exercise,  amazingly.  It  was  his  custom  to  go 
riding  about  every  morning  at  ten  o'clock  and  the 
madam  rode  with  him.  He  never  seemed  so  happy  as 
when  he  was  with  Mrs.  Roosevelt,  and  never  happier 
than  when  they  went  out  together  on  these  morning 
rides  which  lasted  usually  a  couple  of  hours.  While 
at  Washington,  the  President  did  a  large  amount  of 
cross-country  riding;  in  fact,  he  went  regularly  in 
the  mornings.  The  landowners  had  given  him  the 
right  of  way  to  cross  their  fields  and  woods  at  will, 
and  so  he  started  out  and  jumped  the  fences  and  the 
little  streams  and  galloped  over  every  obstacle.  He 
had  three  fine  jumpers  down  there,  their  names  were 
Blinestine,  Rusty  and  Ordgy.  Blinestine  was  one  of 
the  finest  jumpers  in  America.  He  had  as  much  fun 
in  getting  over  the  high  fences  as  the  rider  did — and 
that  was  a  good  deal.  All  the  horses  loved  their  owner, 
but  this  greatest  jumper  loved  the  very  ground  he 
walked  on,  and  would  not  let  him  get  out  of  his  sight 
if  he  could  help  it.  The  President  would  get  off  of 
Blinestine  and  the  horse  would  follow  him  every 
where.  He  would  not  even  stop  to  nip  grass  if  he 
could  have  a  chance  to  be  with  the  Colonel. ' ' 

"You  said  you  sold  all  these  horses  and  these  stalls 
are  empty ?"  I  said.  "How  about  this  little  pony 
in  the  stall !"  "Oh,"  said  he,  "that  is  the  pony  the 
boys  rode  and  loved.  He  seems  like  a  member  of  the 
family.  Mrs.  Roosevelt  will  keep  him  as  long  as  he 
lives  in  memory  of  the  children  and  the  good  times  he 
gave  them.  WTiile  all  the  boys  rode  him  he  belonged 
to  Archie.  There  is  this  funny  story  about  him. 
Archie  was  quite  sick  at  the  White  House.  His 


SAGAMORE   HILL  249 

younger  brother  Quentin  thought  that  a  look  at  Al 
gonquin,  which  was  the  name  of  the  pony,  would  do 
him  good.  And  so  he  got  him  on  the  dumbwaiter, 
hoisted  him  up  to  the  story  where  Archie  was,  and 
walked  the  pony  into  the  room.  It  is  said  that  the 
visit  of  the  pony  did  the  sick  boy  as  much  good  as 
a  doctor  or  medicine.  The  pony  is  a  perfect  little 
beauty,  covered  with  white  spots.  His  long  mane  is  as 
white  as  snow  and  soft  as  silk.  He  seemed  to  me  to 
look  sad,  as  thought  he  were  half-acquainted  with 
the  tragedies  that  had  befallen  the  boys  since  the  days 
in  which  he  had  given  them  so  much  fun.  It  is  said 
that  after  Quen tin's  death  the  Colonel  was  found  in 
this  stall  one  day  with  his  arms  around  the  pony's 
neck  crying  like  a  child  at  the  sad,  sweet  memories. 

1 1  Where  are  those  dogs  that  I  used  to  read  -about 
and  the  Colonel  used  to  talk  so  much  about  ?"  I 
asked.  "The  Colonel  had  five  of  them,"  he  replied, 
"and  every  day,  when  he  went  out  on  his  walk  or  to 
his  chopping,  he  would  call  at  the  door  and  they  all 
would  come  rushing  gladly  to  him.  They  got  to  fuss 
ing  so  much  among  themselves  that  the  Colonel  let 
them  all  go,  but  one  black-and-tan  terrier."  "Is  he 
around  ? "  I  asked.  And  he  called,  { '  Shady !  Shady ! 
Come  here,  Shady!"  And  the  little  fellow,  looking 
every  inch  a  thoroughbred,  came  close  to  my  chair 
and  treated  me  just  as  though  he  knew  I  were  a 
friend  of  his  master 's. 

The  chauffeur  said,  "That  little  fellow  followed  the 
Colonel  everywhere  that  he  went.  He  never  went  to 
the  woods,  or  for  a  walk,  or  for  a  bath  that  he  did  not 
go  with  him  and  stay  with  him  till  he  returned.  He 
was  his  bodyguard.  It  may  be  that  he  was  afraid 
somebody  would  hurt  him,  and  he  would  be  there  to 
defend  him,  but  it  is  most  likely  that  he  just  loved 


250  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

him  as  every  creature  did."  " Let's  look  around  the 
place  a  little,"  I  suggested.  And  he  pointed  to  the 
boxes  on  the  trees  and  said,  "The  Colonel  put  them 
up  as  houses  for  the  birds.  You  notice  there  a  small 
one  with  a  little  hole  in  it  for  tiny  birds.  There  is 
one  there  with  the  door  for  larger  ones,  and  the  one 
yonder  you  see  is  for  birds  that  are  still  larger.  You 
never  saw  a  man  in  the  world  so  fond  of  birds  as  he 
was.  He  fed  them  and  talked  with  them  and  petted 
them  just  as  though  they  were  people." 

As  we  walked  around  to  the  front  of  the  house  at 
the  corner  opposite  the  elm  tree,  there  was  a  large 
box  with  glass  windows  which  was  a  shelter  for  many 
birds  especially  in  winter.  Mr.  Roosevelt  came  out 
every  day  to  that  house  and  fed  the  birds.  They 
seemed  so  happy  as  they  flew  in  out  of  the  cold,  and 
stood  on  perches  where  they  could  lean  against  the 
glass  and  warm  themselves  in  the  sun.  I  stopped  on 
the  porch  and  looked  down  the  grassy  slope  of  the 
woods  that  skirted  it  and  saw  some  of  the  same  birds 
that  he  knew.  I  heard  them  sing  the  songs  that  made 
him  so  happy,  and  I  thought  of  what  he  said  in  his 
autobiography  about  them. 

He  had  just  returned  from  England  where  Sir  Ed 
ward  Grey,  the  noted  naturalist,  had  taken  him  on  a 
long  journey  to  a  deep  forest,  where  they  had  counted 
over  forty  different  species  of  birds  and  heard  at  least 
two-thirds  of  them  sing.  This  is  what  he  says  "On 
the  evening  of  the  first  day  I  sat  in  my  rocking-chair 
on  the  broad  veranda,  looking  across  the  sound  to 
ward  the  glory  of  the  sunset.  The  thickly  grassed 
hillside  sloped  down  in  front  of  me  to  a  belt  of  forest 
from  which  rose  the  golden,  leisurely  chiming  of  the 
wood  thrushes,  chanting  their  vespers;  through  the 
still  air  came  the  warble  of  vireo  and  tanager;  and 


SAGAMORE   HILL  251 

after  nightfall  we  heard  the  flight  song  of  an  ovenbird 
from  the  same  belt  of  timber.  Overhead  an  oriole 
sang  in  the  weeping  elm,  now  and  then  breaking  his 
song  to  scold  like  an  overgrown  wren.  Song-sparrows 
and  catbirds  sang  in  the  shrubbery;  one  robin  had 
built  its  nest  over  the  front  and  one  over  the  back 
door,  and  there  was  a  chippy's  nest  in  the  wistaria 
vine  by  the  stoop.  During  the  next  twenty-four  hours 
I  saw  and  heard,  either  right  around  the  house  or 
while  walking  down  to  bathe,  through  the  woods, 
forty-two  birds. "  And  then  he  gave  the  names  of 
them. 

I  saw  some  children  around  the  place  who  belonged 
to  the  home  of  the  faithful  gardener,  Mr.  Gillespie. 
They  were  very  fond  of  the  Colonel  and  had  reason 
to  be.  They  used  to  follow  him  down  into  the  woods 
when  he  cut  the  big  trees  down.  One  day  they  were 
where  he  was  at  work  and  he  said  to  them,  "Children, 
gather  up  these  chips  and  get  some  dry  sticks  and 
start  a  fire,  then  go  get  some  potatoes  and  corn  and 
roast  them.  That's  the  way  my  children  did,  and 
they  had  piles  of  fun."  So  they  picked  up  the  chips, 
started  a  fire,  had  their  camp  cooking,  and  enjoyed 
their  meal.  And  when  they  had  finished  it,  they 
said,  "Mr.  Roosevelt,  we  never  had  so  much  fun  in 
our  lives."  At  every  Christmas  time  he  called  the 
Gillespie  children  to  him  and  gave  them  a  Christmas 
present,  and  he  always  asked  their  mother  to  find  out 
what  they  wanted,  and  he  got  just  exactly  what  they 
asked  for.  I  was  told  this  incident  the  day  I  was  out 
at  Sagamore  Hill  by  one  to  whom  the  Colonel  related 
it. 

One  Christmas,  the  gardener's  daughter,  Isabel,  six 
years  old,  sent  in  her  request  for  a  bowl  of  goldfish. 
The  Colonel  was  afraid  he  would  have  difficulty  in 


252  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

getting  the  fish  out  to  Sagamore  Hill  in  the  winter 
time,  and  in  time  for  Christmas,  but  he  said  that 
Isabel  wanted  it  and  she  should  have  it  if  it  was  pos 
sible  for  him  to  get-  it.  So  he  went  to  the  store, 
bought  the  fish,  selected  the  globe  in  which  they  were 
to  swim,  drew  out  his  money  to  pay  for  them  and 
said,  "Just  send  them  out  to  Sagamore  Hill." 

The  man  gasped,  "Why,  Colonel,  we  can't.  The 
water  will  freeze  on  the  way  out  and  kill  them."  The 
Colonel  did  not  know  what  to  do  and  said  that  in  all 
of  his  perplexing  problems  that  was  one  of  the  tough 
est  to  solve.  But  he  made  up  his  mind  that  that 
little  girl  wanted  the  goldfish,  and  that  his  specialty 
in  life  had  been  to  overcome  obstacles.  And  so  he 
had  the  man  put  the  fish  in  the  bowl,  packed  it  around 
with  him  as  he  did  the  rest  of  his  shopping  and  under 
difficulties  at  every  step  he  managed  to  get  Isabel's 
goldfish  out  home  for  Christmas. 

Colonel  Roosevelt  did  not  want  to  stay  in  the  hos 
pital  this  last  Christmas,  and  so  Lee  took  his  car 
down  and  brought  him  home,  and  he  said,  ' '  Oh,  my ! 
How  good  it  is  to  get  home."  And  that  very  after 
noon  he  sent  for  the  four  Gillespie  children  and  gave 
them  each  a  present  with  some  kind  words  of  greet 
ing  and  advice,  and  the  very  presents  they  had  asked. 
I  saw  some  little  troughs  on  the  edge  of  the  lawn 
in  which  water  was  put  for  the  birds  to  drink.  The 
Colonel  made  it  a  task  of  the  Gillespie  boy  to  fill  these 
troughs  with  water  each  day.  The  little  fellow  did 
so,  and  on  Sunday  morning  he  saw  a  bright  silver 
dime  at  the  bottom  of  the  water.  He  thought  some 
body  had  lost  it  and  carried  it  to  his  mother.  The 
next  Sunday  there  was  another  dime  in  the  trough. 
He  wondered  where  it  came  from.  And  every  Sun 
day  he  found  his  dime.  It  may  be  that  a  little  bird 


SAGAMORE   HILL  253 

carried  it  there,  or  more  likely  an  angel  brought  the 
silver  piece  from  heaven  and  put  it  in  the  pool  for 
the  boy.  Yes.  It  was  an  angel  that  did  it,  that  lover 
and  guardian  of  American  childhood. 

The  house  was  closed,  but  I  knew  what  was  inside  of 
it,  having  felt  the  summer  breezes  that  swept  through 
it  and  having  been  cheered  by  the  blazing  logs  in 
the  fireplace  in  winter.  I  knew  what  wealth  there 
was  in  the  trophies,  what  numberless  books  adorned  it, 
and  what  precious  memories  clustered  about  it.  I 
thought  of  what  the  father  of  the  house  had  said 
about  children  in  his  autobiography  in  these  words: 
"Books  are  all  very  well  in  their  way,  and  we  have 
them  at  Sagamore  Hill,  but  children  are  better  than 
the  books.  There  are  many  kinds  of  success  in  life 
worth  having.  It  is  exceedingly  interesting  and  at 
tractive  to  be  a  successful  business  man,  or  railroad 
man,  or  farmer,  or  a  successful  lawyer  or  doctor,  or 
a  writer,  or  a  President,  or  a  ranchman,  or  the  colonel 
of  a  fighting  regiment,  or  to  kill  grizzly  bears  and 
lions.  But  for  unflagging  interest  and  enjoyment,  a 
household  of  children,  if  things  go  reasonably  well, 
certainly  makes  all  other  forms  of  success  and  achieve 
ment  lose  their  importance  by  comparison." 

The  story  of  the  "  'spress"  wagon  came  to  mind, 
which  is  thus  told  in  his  autobiography:  "In  my 
rambles  with  the  children,  and  when  the  very  smallest 
pairs  of  feet  grew  tired  of  trudging  bravely  after  us, 
or  of  racing  on  rapturous  side  trips  after  flowers  and 
other  treasures,  the  owners  would  clamber  into  the 
wagon.  One  of  these  wagons,  by  the  way,  a  gorgeous 
red  one,  had  'Express'  painted  on  it  in  gilt  letters, 
and  was  known  to  the  younger  children  as  the 
*  'spress*  wagon.  They  evidently  associated  the  color 
with  the  term.  Once  while  we  were  at  Sagamore 


2o4  THEODORE   EOOSEVELT 

something  happened  to  the  cherished  '  'spress'  wagon 
to  the  distress  of  the  children,  and  especially  of  the 
child  who  owned  it.  Their  mother  and  I  were  just 
starting  for  a  drive  in  the  buggy,  and  we  promised 
the  bereaved  owner  that  we  would  visit  a  store  we 
knew  in  East  Norwich,  a  village  a  few  miles  away, 
and  bring  back  another  *  'spress'  wagon.  When  we 
reached  the  store,  we  found  to  our  dismay  that  the 
wagon  which  we  had  seen  had  been  sold.  We  could 
not  bear  to  return  without  the  promised  gift,  for 
we  knew  that  the  brains  of  small  persons  are  much 
puzzled  when  their  elders  seem  to  break  promises. 
Fortunately,  we  saw  in  the  store  a  delightful  little 
bright-red  chair  and  bright-red  table,  and  these  we 
brought  home  and  handed  solemnly  over  to  the  ex 
pectant  recipient,  explaining  that  as  there  unfortu 
nately  was  not  a  '  'spress'  wagon  we  had  brought  him 
back  a  '  'spress'  chair  and  *  'spress'  table.  It  worked 
beautifully !  The  *  'spress '  chair  and  table  were  re 
ceived  with  such  rapture  that  we  had  to  get  dupli 
cates  for  the  other  small  members  of  the  family. ' ' 

As  I  stood  under  the  weeping  elm,  I  looked  at  the 
building,  ample,  comfortable,  but  not  stately  nor  ex 
travagant,  and  as  I  did  so  it  seemed  to  turn  into  a 
castle  of  precious  stones,  reflecting  their  dazzling 
lustre  and  beauty.  It  was  the  love  that  founded  it 
and  lived  in  it  that  transformed  it  into  the  structure 
of  unspeakable  beauty.  I  thought  of  the  young  ranch 
man  and  statesman  who  thirty-three  years  before  mar 
ried  Miss  Edith  Kermit  Carow  in  St.  George's  church, 
London,  and  brought  her  to  this  house  and  founded 
this  home.  The  love  that  established  and  maintained 
this  home  was  responsible  for  fully  one-half  of  Theo 
dore  Roosevelt's  greatness.  In  eight  cases  out  of 
ten  a  true  wife  is  half  of  a  man's  success  in  any  call- 


SAGAMORE   HILL  255 

ing  in  life.  I  felt  that  it  was  this  home  life  with  wife 
and  children  at  Sagamore  Hill,  as  much  as  anything 
else,  which  appealed  to  the  American  heart  and  made 
him  the  idol  of  the  homes  of  the  world.  This  castle 
of  Sagamore  Hill  sparkled  as  jewels  from  the  love 
within  it,  and  also  reflected  the  splendors  of  an  upper 
world.  I  am  sure  he  counted  Sagamore  Hill  as  the 
place  where  heaven  and  earth  came  closest  together, 
where  they  actually  touched.  This  home  was  a  heaven 
on  earth  to  the  master  ol  this  house.  It  is  a  splendid 
compliment  to  the  virtue  and  conscience  of  the  nation 
that  the  home  on  Sagamore  Hill  should  ever  be  cher 
ished  as  a  sacred  shrine. 

I  looked  up  to  the  room  where  our  dear  friend  died 
and  the  window  out  of  which  he  flew  away  that  cold 
winter  morning,  and  I  wondered  whether  Quentin 
did  not  come  with  his  aeroplane  for  him  to  take  him 
home. 


THEODOKE  BOOSE  VELT'S  SONS 


CHAPTER  XIX 
THEODORE  ROOSEVELT'S  SONS 

WITH  the  precept  and  example  of  such  a 
father  and  mother  it  would  naturally  be  ex 
pected  that  Sagamore  Hill  would  give  an 
ideal  family  to  the  nation.  So  deeply  did  the  great  pa 
triotic  spirit  of  Theodore  Roosevelt  sink  into  the  souls 
of  the  children,  that  all  four  of  his  sons,  one  of  his 
sons-in-law  and  one  of  his  daughters-in-law  volun 
teered  in  the  service  of  their  country  in  the  world 
war,  and  the  other  son-in-law  served  his  country  as  a 
member  of  Congress.  The  four  sons — all  that  he  had 
— went  to  the  front  at  the  earliest  possible  moment. 
All  are  Harvard  men — kindly  in  spirit,  game  sports, 
good  riders  and  sure  shots,  with  splendid  characters, 
intelligent  Christian  gentlemen;  and  fighters  from 
way  back.  There  would  have  been  no  rope  strong 
enough  to  have  kept  those  boys,  raised  on  Sagamore 
Hill,  out  of  the  army.  In  each  one  was  a  love  for  his 
country  stronger  than  his  life. 

LIEUT.-COL.  THEODORE  ROOSEVELT,  JR. 

Theodore,  Jr.,  not  only  carries  his  father's  name, 
but  presents  many  of  his  father's  characteristics.  He 
is  not  as  large  as  his  father  was  toward  the  last,  and 
wears  no  mustache,  but  in  his  facial  expression,  his 
movements,  his  warm  hand-shake,  his  polite  demeanor 
and  mental  virility  he  reminds  one  very  much  of  his 
father.  He  was  born  in  1887,  He  went  to  Groton 

259 


260  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

Preparatory  School  and  graduated  at  Harvard  in 
1909.  He  is  fond  of  sport,  and  accompanied  his  father 
on  a  number  of  hunting  trips  in  the  United  States 
and  in  Canada. 

He  married  Miss  Eleanor  Alexander  in  June,  1910. 
They  have  three  children — Grace  Green,  Theodore, 
Jr.,  and  Cornelius  Schaack. 

Like  many  of  his  New  York  City  ancestors,  Theodore, 
Jr.,  selected  a  business  life.  He  first  entered  the  mills 
of  the  Hartford  Carpet  Company ;  did  successful  work 
there  and  went  out  to  San  Francisco  to  represent  the 
same  company.  In  1912  he  returned  to  New  York,  to 
join  the  firm  of  Bernard,  Griscom  &  Company ;  after 
two  years  with  them  he  became  a  partner  of  Mont 
gomery,  Clothier  &  Tyler. 

Lieut.-Col.  Theodore  Roosevelt  went  to  France  as  a 
Major,  in  command  of  the  First  Battalion,  Twenty- 
sixth  Infantry,  with  the  first  expeditionary  forces  in 
the  summer  of  1917.  Later  he  was  placed  in  command 
of  the  regiment  with  the  rank  of  lieutenant-colonel. 
He  was  dangerously  gassed,  but  fortunately  was 
brought  back  to  life.  He  was  with  his  famous  regi 
ment  in  every  battle  until  the  last  days  ot  the  war, 
when  he  was  wounded  by  a  machine-gun  bullet  in  the 
leg  in  the  fierce  fight  in  the  Argonne  Forest.  He  re 
fused  to  be  taken  from  the  field,  however,  until  his 
boys  had  cleaned  out  the  enemy's  machine-gun  nest 
that  was  doing  such  murderous  work. 

Then  he  was  taken  to  the  hospital,  and  at  the  earli 
est  moment  of  convalescence  he  insisted  upon  going 
back  to  the  front  with  his  regiment  and  remained  with 
it  until  the  signing  of  the  armistice. 

He  returned  with  his  regiment  from  France  early 
in  March.  He  gave  this  unstinted  praise  to  the  New 
York  and  all  the  American  troops:  "No  young  man 


HIS   SONS  261 

can  go  through  the  military  work  that  all  the  drafted 
men  have  gone  through  and  not  be  benefited  by  it.  I 
have  watched  these  New  York  men  as  I  brought  my 
own  battalion  up,  and  I  have  seen  their  baptism  of 
shells  and  bullets  on  July  18  at  Soissons,  when  they 
went  in  with  the  French  at  the  time  of  Foch's  first 
big  offensive.  I  am  delighted  with  the  record  the 
American  troops  have  made  and  trust  that  in  future 
we  shall  bear  in  mind,  as  a  nation,  that  much  could 
have  been  saved  had  we  realized  in  time  the  necessity 
of  proper  preparedness." 

Young  Col.  Theodore  Roosevelt,  with  the  name,  abil 
ity  and  heroism  of  his  father,  attracted  the  attention 
of  the  nation,  which  saw  in  him  a  possible  leader  and 
servant  of  the  people.  In  answer  to  an  almost  uni 
versal  call  on  the  part  of  his  father's  friends,  he  re 
solved  to  give  up  his  business  career  and  devote  him 
self  to  the  service  of  the  State. 

At  a  reception  to  him  and  his  wife,  who  also  served 
in  France,  at  the  Republican  Club  in  New  York  City, 
Col.  Roosevelt  provoked  a  laugh  and  hearty  cheer 
when  he  opened  his  remarks  by  saying,  "It's  bully 
to  be  home. "  He  said  it  was  the  first  time  he  had 
spoken  in  public  since  he  returned  from  France,  and 
he  was  proud  to  speak  before  a  body  representing  the 
party  around  which  all  the  traditions  of  his  family 
had  been  woven.  He  declared  he  was  "  delighted "  to 
see  so  many  ladies  present. 

He  told  many  amusing  and  serious  incidents  of  the 
soldiers  of  his  division  in  and  out  of  the  trenches. 
"While  we  experienced  hard  fighting  in  the  Ar- 
gonne,"  he  said,  "most  of  our  time  was  spent  in  the 
small  villages  back  of  the  lines.  Here  the  men  slept 
in  the  barns  on  the  hay  lofts,  with  the  pigs,  cows  and 
rabbits  on  the  first  floor.  As  the  commander  of  the 


262  THEODOEE    KOOSEVELT 

men  I  was  supposed  to  get  the  best  accommodation, 
but  I  slept  in  a  room  with  a  kindly-faced  old  cow  tied 
to  the  thin  partition  between  my  billet  and  the  adjoin 
ing  apartment  When  the  cow  slept,  I  slept,  and  when 
she  was  wakeful,  I  was  wakeful,  too.  The  old  French 
woman  at  whose  house  we  were  quartered  complained 
that  the  men  in  the  barn  made  so  much  noise  at  night 
that  the  pigs  and  rabbits  could  not  sleep. ' '  "  Rabbits 
are  good  to  eat,  and  they  would  disappear, "  he  said; 
"but  I  know  it  was  impossible  for  the  men  to  have 
eaten  as  many  rabbits  as  the  old  lady  said. ' ' 

In  the  closing  words  of  this  address  he  spoke  of  the 
two  years  of  clean  living  upon  the  part  of  the  boys, 
and  of  their  return  to  this  country  with  characters 
unspoiled.  He  urged  upon  the  people  at  home  the 
necessities  of  aiding  in  every  way  the  permanent  em 
ployment  of  the  men,  and  called  upon  all  good  citi 
zens  to  throw  around  our  former  soldiers  every  moral 
safeguard  to  help  them  to  lives  of  usefulness,  happi 
ness  and  honor. 

How  like  the  father  the  young  Colonel  was,  at  the 
close  of  his  address,  drawing  a  practical  moral  lesson 
for  the  living.  Scarcely  a  letter,  magazine  article  or 
chapter  in  a  book  or  message  can  be  found  in  which 
his  father  did  not  either  wind  up  with  a  splendid 
moral  lesson  for  the  living  or  carry  it  straight  through 
from  beginning  to  end. 

Col.  Eoosevelt's  wife  had  the  honor  of  being  the 
first  American  woman  sent  out  to  war  service  by  the 
Young  Men's  Christian  Association.  She  began  her 
work  in  the  canteen  in  Paris  and  then  was  placed  in 
charge  of  the  leave-areas  at  Aix-le-Bain  for  our  soldier 
boys. 

Speaking  of  the  work  among  the  American  soldiers 
on  leave  in  France,  Mrs.  Koosevelt  said,  "The  first 


HIS   SONS  263 

thing  the  workers  did  was  to  induce  some  of  the  hotel 
proprietors  to  open  their  hotels  in  the  winter,  four 
months  ahead  of  time.  They  rented  the  Casino,  one 
of  the  finest  in  Europe.  We  had  to  take  the  em 
ployees,  too, ' '  she  said,  ' '  and  among  them  was  a  gam 
bling  director,  perhaps  the  only  employee  of  that  char 
acter  which  the  Y.  M.  C.  A.  ever  had.  I  cannot  say 
enough  for  the  behavior  of  our  men  on  leave.  Their 
conduct  was  extremely  good.  A  more  decent,  self- 
respecting  body  of  men  cannot  be  imagined. ' ' 

Some  may  have  thought  that  Colonel  Roosevelt 
was  too  young  for  any  great  responsibility,  but  it  must 
be  remembered  that  he  entered  public  life  three  years 
older  than  his  father  was  when  he  ran  for  the  mayor 
alty  of  New  York,  and  one  year  older  than  his  father 
when  he  took  the  great  task  of  the  Civil  Service  Com- 
missionership.  His  heroism  and  sufferings  for  the 
flag,  his  executive  ability  in  the  organization  of  the 
American  Legion,  composed  of  our  soldiers  of  the 
world  war,  and  his  magnificent  spirit  in  declining  the 
presidency  of  the  organization,  which  the  members  in 
sisted  upon  forcing  on  him,  saying  that  he  would 
rather  stay  and  be  a  booster  than  be  the  head  of  it, 
would  have  marked  him  as  a  natural  leader  of  men 
if  his  name  had  been  other  than  Roosevelt.  Demo 
crats  as  well  as  Republicans  recognized  his  evident 
leadership,  and  he  was  received  in  New  York  as  one 
to  be  admitted  to  the  councils  of  the  nation  and 
worthy  of  any  office  he  should  himself  be  willing  to 
accept. 

CAPT.    ARCHIBALD    BULLOCK    ROOSEVELT 
Capt.  Archie  Roosevelt  is  taller  and  slimmer  than 
the  other  boys.    He  has  many  of  his  father's  endow 
ments  and  peculiarities,  a  bright  eye,  a  strong  grip 


264  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

and  a  kindly  spirit.  He  was  born  in  1894,  had  his  pre 
liminary  education  at  Groton  and  Andover  and  gradu 
ated  at  Harvard  in  1917.  Previous  to  his  graduation 
he  had  gone  into  the  factory  of  the  Hartford  Carpet 
Company,  the  one  in  which  his  older  brother  had  been 
employed. 

In  1917  he  was  married  to  Miss  Grace  Lockwood 
of  Boston.  They  have  one  son,  Archibald,  Jr.  Cap 
tain  Archie  attended  the  Plattsburg  Training  School, 
was  commissioned  Second  Lieutenant  of  Infantry, 
sailed  for  France  in  June,  1917,  was  commissioned  in 
the  Twenty-sixth  Infantry,  the  one  in  which  his 
brother,  Theodore,  was  the  Lieutenant-Colonel,  was 
promoted  to  Captaincy  and  was  severely  wounded  in 
the  arm  and  knee  in  the  Cantigny  fighting. 

Captain  Archie  Roosevelt  in  a  foreword  to  an  ar 
ticle  in  Everybody's  Magazine  for  May,  1918,  had  this 
to  say  of  his  brothers  and  himself  in  the  war :  * '  All  my 
brothers  were  in  the  thickest  of  the  fighting,  yet  two 
will  safely  come  back.  And  while  one  sleeps  in 
France,  he  met  a  soldier 's  death  in  battle  and  died 
fighting  for  the  principles  in  which  we  believe — that 
is  all  we  can  ask.  For  my  own  part,  I  went  in  as 
Second  Lieutenant  of  Infantry,  was  promoted  to  Cap 
tain  while  in  France,  had  the  great  good  fortune  of 
being  cited  and  decorated,  and  still  have  a  useful 
right  arm  and  leg  and  a  fairly  useful  left  arm  and 
leg.  All  of  which  is  more  good  luck  than  I  deserve/' 

Capt.  Archie  Roosevelt  has  followed  his  father's  ex 
ample  in  his  early  devotion  to  literary  work.  His 
articles  have  some  of  the  characteristics  of  his  father. 
There  is  that  directness  of  expression  which  Harvard 
teaches  her  sons,  there  is  a  clearness  of  thought  which 
is  unmistakable,  and  there  is  a  vigorous  rebuking  of 
what  he  counts  errors  and  evils  and  absolute  fearless- 


©  Underwood  &  Underwood,  X.   Y 

THE  COLONEL'S  TRIP  TO  WYOMING. 


HIS  SONS  265 

ness  in  doing  so,  which  his  father  manifested  from  the 
beginning  to  the  end  of  his  life.  A  man  who  has 
served  and  suffered  as  the  Captain  has  done  will  make 
a  mighty  good  citizen. 

Captain  Roosevelt's  misfortune  gave  him  the  sad 
sweet  privilege  of  being  with  his  father  and  comfort 
ing  and  being  comforted  by  him  during  the  last  days 
of  his  life,  the  delicacy  of  that  relation  was  too  sacred 
for  description.  A  double  sorrow  fell  upon  the  Cap 
tain  in  the  death  of  his  wife's  father,  whose  funeral 
he  had  gone  to  Boston  to  attend  when  advised  of  the 
death  of  his  own  father.  The  brave  boy  beat  back  the 
sorrow  that  broke  his  heart,  and  lovingly  acted  as  an 
usher  at  his  father's  funeral.  The  precious  memories 
which  he  will  have  of  the  last  services  he  was  per 
mitted  to  render  to  his  father  for  himself  and  the 
other  brave  boys  that  were  in  the  field  will  be  a  pre 
cious  memory  to  him  as  long  as  he  shall  live. 

CAPT.  KERMIT  ROOSEVELT 
Capt.  Kermit  Roosevelt  looks  so  much  like  his  father 
did  when  I  first  met  him  twenty-four  years  ago,  that 
when  I  saw  him,  after  his  return  from  France,  the  re 
semblance-  was  so  striking  as  to  soften  my  heart,  and 
to  fill  it  with  holy  memories  and  precious  sentiments. 
As  I  remember  it  he  is  somewhat  smaller  than  his 
father  was  then,  but  the  shape  of  his  face,  and  color 
of  his  mustache,  worn  like  his  father's,  his  quick  firm 
step,  his  keenness  to  apprehend  propositions,  to  in 
terpret  thoughts  of  others  and  his  swift  conclusions, 
took  me  back  to  the  man  I  knew  a  quarter  of  a  cen 
tury  before. 

He  was  born  in  1889.    He  prepared  for  college  at 
Groton  and  graduated  at  Harvard. 
In  June,  1914,  he  married  Miss  Belle  Wyatt  Wil- 


266  THEODORE  ROOSEVELT 

lard,  of  Richmond,  Va.  Their  two  children  are  Ker- 
mit,  Jr.,  and  Joseph  Willard.  He  went  to  work  in 
Brazil  in  1912,  spending  three  years  there.  He  spent 
two  other  years  in  Argentina  and  Chile,  returning  to 
this  country  about  the  time  the  war  broke  out.  He 
went  immediately  to  the  Officers'  Training  Camp  at 
Plattsburg. 

We  were  so  slow  in  getting  into  the  war,  and  he 
was  so  anxious  to  enter  it,  that  he  sailed  from  Eng 
land  in  July,  1917,  to  go  with  the  British  Army's  Ex 
peditionary  Forces  in  Mesopotamia.  Being  a  student 
officer  at  the  camp  at  Plattsburg  he  would  not  have 
been  taken  amongst  the  first  to  go  abroad,  but  with 
rare  initiative  he  became  enrolled  as  a  British  sol 
dier  and  was  cited  in  British  dispatches  for  his  serv 
ice  as  an  English  Captain  and  received  the  British 
military  cross  for  bravery  in  action.  But  when  our 
own  boys  got  over  into  France  he  longed  to  be  with 
them  and  under  his  own  flag,  and  so  in  July,  1918,  he 
returned  to  France  and  was  commissioned  in  the  Sev 
enth  Field  Artillery  (75's)  Regiment  which  formed  a 
part  of  the  First  Division.  He  remained  with  them 
until  January,  1919,  at  which  time  they  formed  a 
part  of  the  Army  of  Occupation. 

Kermit  was  like  his  father,  a  mighty  hunter.  He 
was  his  father's  right  hand  man  in  the  great  African 
hunting  trip  in  1909-1910.  In  his  African  Game 
Trails  his  father  thus  speaks  of  his  singular  history  as 
a  hunter '.  ' '  On  this  trip  Kermit  passed  his  twentieth 
birthday.  While  still  nineteen  he  had  killed  all  the 
kinds  of  dangerous  African  game — lion,  leopard,  ele 
phant,  buffalo  and  rhino."  The  father  gives  this  de 
scription  of  a  rhino  hunt  which  was  a  wonderful  piece 
of  sportsmanship:  "Kermit  stole  down  one  of  the 
rhino  paths,  save  for  which  the  scrub  would  have  been 


HIS   SONS  267 

practically  impenetrable;  it  was  alive  with  rhinos; 
Kermit  heard  several,  and  Juma,  who  followed  some 
distance  behind,  saw  three.  The  stalk  took  time ;  and 
the  sun  was  on  the  horizon  and  the  light  fading  when, 
at  over  two  hundred  yards,  Kermit  took  his  shot.  The 
first  bullet  missed,  but  as  for  a  moment  the  bull 
paused  and  wheeled,  Kermit  fired  again  and  the  second 
bullet  went  home.  The  wounded  beast  ran,  Kermit, 
with  Juma,  hard  on  the  trail;  and.  he  overtook  and 
killed  it  just  as  darkness  fell.  Then  back  to  camp 
they  stumbled  and  plunged  through  the  darkness. " 

In  the  same  book  the  father  describes  a  tragical 
fight  which  Kermit  had  with  a  savage  leopard  which 
surprised  and  charged  him  while  he  was  on  a  lion 
hunt.  After  having  shot  the  beast,  which  angry  from 
his  wound  had  run  down  and  bitten  one  of  his  help 
ers  he  found  himself  charged  again,  and  shot  the  ani 
mal  when  it  was  almost  upon  him.  It  fell  dead  at 
his  feet.  The  father  was  very  proud  of  a  huge 
heavy-mane  lion  which  Kermit  had  killed  and  gave 
a  picture  of  the  mammoth  man-eater  as  an  illustra 
tion  in  his  book. 

Kermit  Roosevelt  in  that  one  year  made  famous 
progress  in  nature  study  and  placed  himself  among 
the  world's  greatest  big-game  hunters.  His  courage 
was  not  only  manifested  in  the  use  of  the  rifle,  but 
also  in  the  use  of  the  camera  in  the  interest  of  science. 
His  pictures  of  the  dangerous  big  game  in  their  native 
haunts,  taken  at  close  range,  will  be  appreciated  and 
studied  by  the  students  of  natural  history  everywhere. 

It  was  a  fortunate  thing  that  Kermit  Roosevelt, 
who  was  such  a  delightful  and  efficient  companion  to 
his  father  on  his  African  tour,  should  have  gone  with 
him  on  his  trip  of  exploration  to  the  Brazilian  wilder 
ness.  It  was  a  singularly  dangerous,  if  not  a  fatal, 


268  THEODORE    ROOSEVELT 

trip,  and  the  son  had  an  opportunity  amidst  all  the 
dangers  and  sufferings  and  sickness  of  the  trip  to  sup 
port  that  strong  man,  who  had  held  up  a  nation  in 
his  mighty  arm.  It  would  be  surprising  if  these 
years  of  companionship,  of  heroism  and  mutual  help 
fulness,  as  well  as  filial  and  paternal  devotion,  had  not 
cemented  the  hearts  of  father  and  son  in  an  unusual 
manner.  The  last  night  of  his  life  as  he  sat  in  front 
of  the  open  fire  with  Mrs.  Roosevelt  by  his  side,  after 
having  corrected  the  proofs  of  his  last  editorial,  he  put 
a  set  of  proofs  in  an  envelope  and  adressed  them  to 
his  son,  Captain  Kermit,  who  was  in  the  army  abroad. 
Capt.  Kermit  Roosevelt  may  become  a  naturalist  of 
note,  a  politician  of  sagacity,  but  he  will  be  a  patri 
otic  citizen  with  an  equipment  for  any  responsibility 
or  honor  the  people  may  have  in  store  for  him. 

LIEUT.  QUENTIN  ROOSEVELT 

Lieut.  Quentin  Roosevelt,  the  youngest  of  the  chil 
dren,  was  born  in  1897.  He  was  prepared  for  college 
at  Groton,  and  had  the  war  not  intervened  he  would 
have  graduated  at  Harvard  in  the  class  of  1919. 
Those  who  knew  him  best  say  that  he  was  very  much 
like  his  father  in  action  and  endowment ;  that  he  pos 
sessed  evidences  of  the  highest  genius.  Charley  Lee, 
the  family  chauffeur,  told  me  that  he  never  knew  a 
brighter  lad.  He  said  that,  when  a  mere  boy,  Quen 
tin  could  see  through  an  automobile  almost  as  well 
as  he  could  himself ;  that  he  understood  its  parts  and 
their  workings.  He  also  told  me  of  a  physical  and 
mental  feat  which  he  performed  at  Groton  in  man 
aging  two  printing  presses  at  the  same  time — an  act 
which  had  never  been  performed  by  any  other  one  in 
the  history  of  the  school.  He  was  as  rugged  in  his 
bravery  as  he  was  strong  in  his  mental  faculties. 


HIS  SONS  269 

He  was  only  a  sophomore  in  college  when  the  war 
broke  out,  but  he  determined  to  leave  college  and  en 
list,  and  he  could  talk  or  think  of  nothing  else.  Saga 
more  Hill  was  not  far  from  Mineola,  the  Government 
aviation  camp,  and  the  bird-men  were  flying  every 
day  in  practice  over  their  home.  His  soul,  which  had 
great  wings,  longed  to  soar  into  the  air,  and  to  fight 
for  his  flag  in  the  most  dangerous  department  of  war 
service. 

His  father,  before  giving  his  consent  to  his  enter 
ing  this  branch  of  the  service,  went  down  to  the  camp 
at  Mineola,  took  a  place  in  an  aeroplane  to  make  a  trip 
with  the  pilot  and  flew  over  Long  Island  Sound  and 
its  shores  for  about  three-quarters  of  an  hour.  He 
then  talked  the  matter  over  with  Quentin,  who  was 
BO  anxious  to  go;  and  he  and  Mrs.  Roosevelt  gave 
their  consent.  They  gave  him  up  to  be  a  bird-man, 
to  fight  for  his  country,  knowing  that  danger  would 
stare  him  in  the  face  every  moment  of  his  active  serv 
ice.  Loving  him  better  than  they  did  their  own  lives, 
like  thousands  of  other  American  mothers  and  fathers, 
they  loved  their  country  still  better  and  gave  him  up. 
The  supreme  sacrifice  was  theirs  as  well  as  his.  He 
went  to  Mineola  for  training  as  an  aviator. 

Mr.  Will  H.  Hays  in  an  address  at  Indianapolis 
said: 

"The  president  of  a  college  the  other  day  told  me 
that  he  had  met  Quentin  Roosevelt  in  France  a  short 
time  before  Quentin  was  killed,  that  he  talked  with 
him  about  the  fact  that  the  four  sons  of  Theodore 
Roosevelt  were  all  fighting  in  France,  and  said,  ' '  You 
have  done  about  your  part,  Quentin."  "Well,"  this 
young  Roosevelt  replied,  "we  boys  thought  that  it  was 
up  to  us  to  practice  what  father  preached." 

At  a  social  function,  given  at  Sagamore  Hill,  where 


270  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

about  one  thousand  guests  were  gathered,  a  daring 
aviator  flew  around  and  around  the  house  and  Colo 
nel  Roosevelt  watched  the  skillful  manner  in  which 
the  airship  was  navigated,  but  never  knew,  until  sev 
eral  days  after,  that  the  birdman  was  his  son,  Quen- 
tin,  who,  out  of  love  for  his  father,  was  recognizing 
the  function.  He  left  for  Europe  in  July,  1917,  with 
the  first  American  flying  unit.  In  a  desperate  air 
battle  he  was  killed  on  the  14th  of  July,  1918,  his 
plane  and  body  falling  over  the  enemy 's  lines  near 
the  little  village  of  Chambry.  The  Germans  buried 
him  with  honor  and  marked  his  resting-place 

The  death  of  Quentin,  the  bitterest  blow  of  his  life, 
did  not  come  to  his  father  without  warning,  for  in  a 
dispatch  the  correspondent  of  a  New  York  publication 
advised  his  office  to  watch  Oyster  Bay  "for  news  of 

. ' '    The  censor  cut  the  dispatch  at  that  point. 

This  was  submitted  to  Mr.  Roosevelt,  and  by  a  process 
of  elimination  Quentin  was  decided  to  have  been  at 
least  injured.  "It  can't  be  Ted,  and  it  can't  be 
Archie,"  said  he,  "for  both  are  recovering  from 
wounds;  it's  not  Kermit,  for  he  is  not  in  the  danger- 
zone  at  just  this  moment.  So  it  must  be  Quentin. 
However,  we  must  say  nothing  of  this  to  his  mother 
to-night." 

Early  the  next  morning  a  newspaper  reporter  of 
Oyster  Bay  went  out  to  Sagamore  Hill  to  carry  the 
sad  news  of  Quentin 's  death.  He  rang  the  bell;  the 
Colonel  himself  came  to  the  door,  and,  going  out  on 
the  porch  together  the  awful  news  was  broken.  The 
Colonel  walked  the  porch  in  silence  for  a  while  and 
then  said  to  the  visitor,  ' '  But — Mrs.  Roosevelt !  How 
am  I  going  to  break  it  to  her?"  He  then  turned 
about  and  started  into  the  house  to  perform  one  of 
the  bravest  acts  of  his  life — to  tell  Mrs.  Roosevelt  that 


HIS   SONS  271 

Quentin  had  been  killed.  And  she,  with  a  soul  as 
brave  as  that  of  her  husband,  received  the  news  with 
supreme  heroism.  They  sent  out  this  joint  letter  to 
the  world  which  will  be  read  centuries  from  now  as 
a  specimen  of  the  highest  heroism : 

Quentin's  mother  anl  I  are  very  glad  that  he  got  to  the 
front  and  had  a  chance  to  render  some  service  to  his  coun 
try  and  to  show  the  stuff  that  was  in  him  before  his  fate 
befell  him. 

In  accordance  with  a  plan  of  the  War  Department 
to  bring  back  to  their  relatives  at  the  close  of  the 
war  the  dead  bodies  of  those  who  died  over  the  sea, 
General  Pershing  cabled  Colonel  Eoosevelt  that,  if 
they  desired  the  body  of  Quentin,  it  would  be  re 
moved  to  America.  France  meanwhile  had  paid  the 
fullest  honors  to  the  dead  aviator.  In  a  letter  to  Gen 
eral  March,  Chief  of  Staff  at  Washington,  Colonel 
Eoosevelt  wrote : 

Mrs.  Roosevelt  and  I  wish  to  enter  a,  most  respectful 
but  most  emphatic  protest  against  the  proposed  course  as 
far  as  our  son  Quentiu  is  concerned.  We  have  always  be 
lieved  that 

"Where  the  tree  falls, 
There  let  it  lie." 

We  know  that  many  good  persons  feel  entirely  different, 
but  to  us  it  is  painful  and  harrowing  long  after  death  to 
move  the  poor  body  from  which  the  soul  has  fled.  We 
greatly  prefer  that  Quentin  shall  continue  to  lie  on  the  spot 
where  he  fell  in  battle  and  where  the  foeman  buried  him. 

After  the  war  is  over  Mrs.  Roosevelt  and  I  intend  to 
visit  the  grave  and  then  to  have  a  small  stone  put  up  by 
us,  but  not  disturbing  what  has  already  been  erected  to 
his  memory  by  his  friends  and  American  comrades-in-arms. 

With  apologies  for  troubling  you, 

Very  faithfully  yours, 

THEODORE  ROOSEVELT. 


272  THEODORE    ROOSEVELT 

And  early  in  the  spring  Mrs.  Roosevelt  carried  out 
the  plan  which  her  husband  and  she  had  laid,  that  of 
visiting  Quentin's  grave,  and  receiving  every  cour 
tesy  T)f  the  American  officers  and  the  French  Govern 
ment,  she  performed  that  sacred  service  in  the  most 
quiet  and  modest  manner ;  and  there  marked  the  grave 
for  the  attention  and  inspiration  of  generations  to 
come.  The  mother,  when  she  put  the  flowers  on  the 
grave  knew  that  it  was  not  her  boy  who  rested  there, 
but  the  material  body  which  he  wore.  Quentin  Roose 
velt  did  not  come  down  with  his  aeroplane,  it  was 
only  his  raiment  that  he  dropped.  He  continued  to 
fly.  He  flew  like  an  eagle,  fought  like  an  eagle,  con 
quered  like  an  eagle  and  then  flew  away  above  the 
clouds  and  to  the  mountain  top  beyond  the  river. 

MRS,  ETHEL  CAROW  ROOSEVELT  DERBY 

Ethel  Carow  Roosevelt  was  born  in  1891.  She  re 
ceived  a  thorough  education  in  the  city  of  Washing 
ton.  In  one  corner  of  the  barn  at  Sagamore  Hill,  I 
saw  a  trap  which  was  cherished  as  a  precious  relic. 
In  it  Miss  Ethel,  when  in  Washington,  drove  to  and 
from  one  of  the  most  important  girl's  schools  in  the 
country.  She  possessed  the  attractive  qualities  of 
both  sides  of  the  house  and  the  training  which  such  a 
home  furnishes,  and  was  the  apple  of  her  father  Js  eye, 
his  companion  as  a  romping  girl  and  his  help  as  a 
mature  woman. 

She  was  married  in  1913  to  Dr.  Richard  Derby  of 
New  York  City  Two  children  have  been  given  to 
them,  Richard,  Jr.,  and  Edith  Carow.  When  the  Colo 
nel  came  home  from  the  hospital  on  his  last  Christmas 
Day,  little  Edith  ran  out  to  meet  him  and  said,  "Oh, 
grandpa,  come  in  the  house  and  see  what  Santa  Claus 
has  brought !" 


HIS   SONS  273 

'Among  many  of  the  pictures  of  the  Colonel  none 
seemed  more  beautiful  or  eloquent  than  those  in  which 
he  appears  with  his  grandchildren.  His  greatness 
seems  to  reach  its  climax  in  the  tenderness  of  his  ex 
pression,  as  he  holds  them  in  his  lap  or  looks  into 
their  faces.  None  is  more  beautiful  than  the  one  in 
which  he  holds  Archie's  baby  in  his  lap,  Richard 
Derby,  Jr.,  and  Edith  Carow  standing  by  him  with 
the  pioud  mothers  in  the  group.  The  supreme  joy, 
which  he  and  Mrs.  Roosevelt  had  in  their  children, 
was  continued  in  their  grandchildren,  which  they 
counted  as  their  own. 

Lieut.-Col.  Richard  Derby  was  one  of  the  most  able 
and  successful  physicians  and  surgeons  in  New  York 
City.  He  entered  the  Medical  Corps  of  the  army,  was 
commissioned  as  major,  fought  throughout  the  war  in 
the  Second  Division  in  France  and  was  promoted  to 
a  lieutenant-colonelcy. 

One  of  the  most  beautiful  of  romances  is  the  love, 
courtship  and  marriage  of  Miss  Ethel  Roosevelt  to 
Dr.  Derby.  I  have  the  story  from  a  gentleman  who 
knew  the  facts.  He  told  me  that  there  was  a  very 
poor  mother  at  Oyster  Bay,  who  had  a  son  with  a 
deformed  foot  and  that  in  thinking  over  some  plan 
of  relief  for  the  boy  he  felt  sure  that  if  the  matter 
were  brought  to  Colonel  Roosevelt's  attention,  he 
would  see  that  the  boy  had  some  surgical  help.  He 
said  that  the  Colonel  and  Mrs.  Roosevelt  performed 
scores,  even  hundreds  of  acts  of  charity  about  which 
the  public  knew  nothing,  and  that  such  a  case  would 
appeal  to  them  at  once.  He  met  Colonel  Roosevelt 
one  day  and  told  him  about  this  boy.  He  immediately 
sent  his  daughter  Ethel  down  to  the  house  to  see  the 
child  and  talk  the  matter  over  with  the  mother.  Miss 
Ethel  reported  the  facts  to  her  father,  who  told  her  to 


274  THEODORE    ROOSEVELT 

take  the  child  down  to  the  Roosevelt  Hospital  in  New 
York,  to  have  the  foot  operated  upon,  saying  he  would 
pay  the  bill.  She  did  so  and  it  so  chanced  that  one  of 
the  surgeons  attending  the  child  was  Dr.  Richard 
Derby,  up  to  that  time  unknown  to  Miss  Ethel.  The 
rest  of  the  story  speaks  for  itself,  in  a  fortunate  mar 
riage  and  happy  family.  The  boy  was  cured  and  went 
out  into  life  without  a  handicap. 

ALICE  LEE  ROOSEVELT 
Alice  Lee  Roosevelt  was  born  in  1885.  Her  father 
was  very  devoted  to  her  and  she  idolized  him.  She 
was  brought  up  with  the  other  Roosevelt  children  at 
the  home  on  Sagamore  Hill,  and  was  sister  to  them  all. 
Mrs.  Roosevelt  treated  her  with  the  same  affection  and 
care  that  she.  did  the  rest  of  the  children.  She  had 
every  educational,  moral  and  social  equipment  for  a 
life  of  usefulness,  happiness  and  honor.  She  was  mar^ 
ried  in  the  White  House  on  February  17,  1906,  to 
Nicholas  Longworth,  of  Cincinnati. 

Nicholas  Longworth  was  a  graduate  of  Harvard, 
and  the  Harvard  Law  School,  a  lawyer  in  Cincinnati. 
"With  the  exception  of  two  years  he  had  been  in  1919 
a  member  of  Congress  from  Cincinnati  for  sixteen 
years,  and  had  been  known  through  the  nation  not 
only  as  Colonel  Roosevelt's  son-in-law,  but  also  as  a 
competent,  conscientious  and  patriotic  servant  of  the 
people. 

Colonel  Roosevelt  said  to  me  one  day, ' '  They  would 
not  let  me  go  to  war,  but  I  sent  four  of  my  sons  to  the 
front,  each  one  of  whom  I  love  better  than  my  own 
life,  and  also  the  husband  of  my  daughter  who  seems 
like  my  own.  There  is  much  more  of  me  in  the  war, 
now,  than  though  I  were  there  myself,  for  these  boys 
are  my  heart  of  hearts,  they  are  the  life  of  my  life." 


HIS  SONS  275 

I  never  saw  him  look  so  serious  and  it  was  the  first 
time  he  ever  looked  to  me  as  though  he  wanted  to 
cry;  his  words  were  spoken  with  such  deep  emotion. 
4 1  Colonel, ' '  I  said  to  him, ' '  we  know  that  the  boys  will 
do  brave  fighting  and  we  will  hope  and  pray  that 
God  will  send  them  back  to  you."  "It  is  my  con 
stant  prayer  to  God,"  he  answered,  "that,  in  His 
mercy,  He  will  spare  them,  use  them  in  the  battle  and 
then  let  them  come  home  to  us  again."  He  paused 
a  moment  and  said,  "It  is  not  likely  that  all  will 
come  back  from  such  a  deadly  war,  but  we  will  have 
to  leave  them  in  the  hands  of  a  good  God,  Who  doeth 
all  things  well,"  he  continued,  "I  am  mighty  proud 
of  .my  boys,"  and  pausing  a  moment  he  said,  "I  am 
just  as  proud  of  my  splendid  girls. ' ' 

The  one  who  for  over  seven  years  presided  over  the 
"White  House  with  such  dignity,  grace  and  genuine 
hospitality,  who  was  the  sunshine  of  Sagamore  Hill, 
was  the  mother  of  Colonel  Koosevelt  's  sons ;  and  they 
were  her  jewels. 


FRIENDS  AT  OYSTER  BAY 


CHAPTER  XX 
FEIENDS  AT  OYSTER  BAY 

OUT  at  Oyster  Bay  I  spent  a  day  with  some 
of  Theodore  Roosevelt's  old  friends  and 
talked  with  them  about  him.  They  told  a 
number  of  incidents  that  illustrate  Colonel  Roose 
velt's  characteristics.  Rev.  J.  J.  Blythe  went  out  to 
Sagamore  Hill  one  day  to  see  Mr.  Roosevelt  about  the 
son  of  one  of  his  members  who  was  in  the  aviation 
corps  and  whose  father  desired  that  he  should  have 
training  in  flying  in  this  country  instead  of  in  Europe. 
Mr.  Roosevelt  answered  promptly,  "I  have  not  asked 
a  single  favor  for  my  own  boys  and  shall  not  do  so. 
And  hence  I  shall  not  interfere  with  reference  to  the 
sons  of  any  one  else.  What  the  nation  wants  is  men 
on  the  other  side,  and  men  on  the  other  side  at  once. ' ' 
Mr.  E.  F.  Cheshire,  the  cashier  of  the  Oyster  Bay 
bank,  was  a  warm  friend  of  Mr.  Roosevelt.  He  said 
the  Colonel  often  came  into  their  bank,  where  he  had 
his  account,  and  that  he  invariably  removed  his  hat 
on  entering  the  door;  the  reason  he  did  so  was  that 
two  of  the  bookkeepers  were  women  and  he  removed 
his  hat  out  of  deference  for  them.  Though  often  ap 
parently  rough  he  was  one  of  the  politest  of  gentle 
men.  Pointing  up  to  the  wall  of  the  director's  office 

279 


280  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

the  cashier  said,  "Do  you  see  that?"  It  was  a  large 
portrait  of  Mr.  Roosevelt,  with  the  dedication  to  the 
bank  written  and  signed  in  his  own  handwriting. 
Mr.  Cheshire  said,  "I  often  went  out  to  Sagamore 
Hill  as  a  notary  public  to  acknowledge  some  paper  or 
transact  some  business  in  connection  with  the  bank, 
and  one  of  the  last  times  I  went  out  there  he  said 
to  me,  l Cheshire,  how  old  are  you?'  I  told  him  my 
age  and  he  said,  'Have  you  a  family?'  I  replied,  'A 
wife  and  children.'  He  said,  'You  ought  to  be  in 
the  war,  you  splendid,  able-bodied  man.  You  ought 
to  be  on  the  other  side  fighting  with  my  boys  at 
the  front.'  His  whole  soul  was  wrapped  up  in  the 
war,  and  he  could  not  think  of  anything  else  or  talk 
about  anything  else." 

Mr.  "W.  L.  Marsh,  the  station  agent  of  the  Long 
Island  Railroad  at  Oyster  Bay,  for  many  years 
handled  Colonel  Roosevelt's  private  and  official  tele 
grams  and  business  of  every  kind  connected  with 
the  local  station.  He  told  a  number  of  incidents  il 
lustrating  the  admirable  traits  of  the  Colonel's  char 
acter.  This  was  one  of  them:  "Once  in  the  presence 
of  quite  a  large  delegation  of  big  men  in  national 
and  State  affairs  I  saw  him  place  his  hand  on  the 
shoulder  of  a  poor,  good,  honest  fellow-citizen  and 
say,  'By  George,  this  man  is  my  friend!  Gentlemen, 
I  love  to  lean  on  just  such  men.'  :  Was  there  ever 
a  truer  illustration  of  one  of  the  greatest  elements 
of  Theodore  Roosevelt's  success,  his  absolute  faith  in 
the  common  people  and  his  firm  reliance  upon  them 
in  his  public  undertakings? 

Colonel  Roosevelt  knew  nearly  every  person  in 
Oyster  Bay  by  name  and  called  very  many  of  them 
by  their  first  names,  but  this  power  of  memory  he 
possessed  in  so  remarkable  a  degree  that  he  remem- 


FRIENDS   AT    OYSTER   BAY  281 

bered  the  faces  and  names  of  tens,  of  hundreds  of 
thousands.  Mr.  Marsh  recalled  an  incident  illustrat 
ing  Colonel  Roosevelt's  willingness  to  correct  a  mis 
take  when  made.  He  gave  a  recommendation  to  a 
man  who  he  thought  was  a  person  of  ability  and 
honor,  but  he  found  afterward  that  the  man  was  un 
trustworthy.  He  immediately  sent  word  to  the  man 
that  he  had  been  mistaken  in  his  estimate  of  him,  that 
he  had  evidence  that  made  it  impossible  for  him  to 
commend  him  and  demanded  the  destruction  of  the 
recommendation  which  he  had  given  him.  The  inci 
dent  also  illustrates  Mr.  Roosevelt's  absolute  integrity. 
Rev.  Geo.  W.  Roesch,  a  former  minister  of  Oyster 
Bay  and  a  warm  personal  friend  of  Mr.  Roosevelt, 
said  that  the  Colonel  told  him  that  during  the  previous 
year,  with  the  help  of  secretaries,  he  had  answered 
twenty-five  thousand  letters,  twenty-five  hundred  of 
which  were  invitations  to  speak  in  public.  This  story 
illustrates  ME.  Roosevelt's  prodigious  capacity  for 
work.  History  does  not  furnish  his  superior.  As  a 
tireless  worker  he  wrought  more  years  with  more  cor 
rect  methods,  with  deeper  intensity  and  with  larger 
meaning  than  any  other  man  of  our  time.  The  inci 
dent  also  shows  how  immensely  popular  he  was  and 
how  the  people  craved  his  personal  presence  and  ser 
vice.  Rev.  Roesch  told  also  this  anecdote  which,  he 
says  Mr.  H.  M.  V.  Summers  is  responsible  for.  It  is 
this:  About  seventeen  years  before  the  famous  Af-> 
rican  hunting  trip  the  Colonel  was  having  some  re 
pairs  made  at  Sagamore  Hill.  The  work  done  by  one 
of  the  mechanics  was  not  progressing  in  the  manner 
he  intended  and  he  drew  attention  to  the  work.  The 
response  was  short  and  sharp, ' '  I  take  my  orders  from 
the  boss."  Roosevelt,  therefore,  saw  the  contractor 
and  the  work  was  soon  changed.  On  his  return  from 


282  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

Africa,  seventeen  years  later,  citizens  of  Long  Island 
and  New  York  City  attended  the  mighty  hunter's  re 
ception  at  Sagamore  Hill.  On  the  long  reception  line 
among  others,  was  the  before-mentioned  mechanic.  He 
shook  hands  with  the  Colonel,  received  a  few  appro 
priate  words,  and  passed  on.  He  had  gone,  however, 
but  a  few  steps,  when  Roosevelt  reached  after  him, 
pulled  him  back  and  demanded  with  his  hearty 
chuckle,  "Say,  do  you  still  take  your  orders  from  the 
boss." 

This  anecdote  reveals  that  never-failing  memory, 
and  also  that  kindly  forgiving  spirit,  that  were  card 
inal  Roosevelt  traits. 

Rev.  Warren  I.  Bowman,  of  Brooklyn,  the  former 
pastor  of  the  Methodist  Church  at  Oyster  Bay,  re 
membered  many  incidents  which  open  new  windows 
on  some  of  the  beautiful  phases  of  Mr.  Roosevelt's 
character.  Some  of  them  I  give  here  in  his  own  lan 
guage.  Reverend  Bowman  said: 

Colonel  Roosevelt  was  very,  very  fond  of  the  people  of 
Oyster  Bay.  He  showed  his  regard  for  them  by  giving  to 
them  an  annual  reception  at  Sagamore  Hill.  The  recep 
tions  were  democratic  in  the  highest  degree.  He  let  it  be 
understood  that  everybody  was  invited;  he  also  sent  spe 
cial  notices  of  invitation  to  be  read  from  the  various  pul 
pits  and*  asked  the  pastors  to  emphasize  the  notice  and  urge 
the  people  to  come  out  to  his  house.  It  was  the  gala  day 
of  all  the  year  to  the  village.  The  reception  began  at  four 
o'clock  in  the  afternoon.  After  a  season  of  most  delightful 
social  entertainment,  President  Roosevelt  made  his  neigh 
bors  an  address  of  some  kind — social,  moral,  economic  or 
sometimes  political,  but  always  non-partisan.  Then  Mrs. 
Roosevelt  would  serve  refreshments,  and  the  people  were 
happy  and  grateful  beyond  all  description. 

During  his  term  as  President  the  citizens  of  Oyster  Bay 
gave  him  a  reception  as  he  went  to  Washington  and  when 
he  came  back.  These  were  usually  held  at  the  depot.  I 
shall  never  forget  the  one  we  gave  him  as  he  went  to  Wash- 


FRIENDS   AT   OYSTER  BAY  283 

ington  for  the  last  time  during  his  term.  He  was  very  fond 
of  music  and  our  male  chorus  led  the  singing.  He  ad 
dressed  us  in  tender  words  and  then  we  sang,  "God  Be 
with  You  till  We  Meet  Again."  Tears  filled  his  eyes.  I 
have  been  with  him  often,  but  I  never  saw  him  cry  before. 
The  tears  that  filled  his  eyes,  fell  down  in  big  drops  on 
his  cheeks,  and  the  whole  audience  was  melted  with  emo 
tion.  It  certainly  seemed  that  God  was  there  and  would 
be  with  him  till  we  met  him  again. 

He  had  an  inner  circle,  a  closer  brotherhood;  he  was  a 
loyal  member  of  the  Masonic  fraternity  and  the  greatest 
occasions  of  the  year  were  when  he  attended  the  lodge.  He 
always  spoke  to  us  on  some  morally  healthful  theme.  I 
remember  well  what  he  said  on  one  of  those  occasions: 
"Brothers,  I  feel  it  my  greatest  privilege  and  duty,  and  it 
gives  me  supremest  joy,  to  help  one  who  is  striving  to  ad 
vance  and  to  live  the  life  that  he  should  live.  But,"  he 
continued,  "where,  however,  I  find  one  who  is  given  to 
wrong-doings  and  professes  to  be  good  I  strike  him  with  all 
the  power  that  is  in  me."  After  the  address  I  commended 
what  he  said?  and  he  replied:  ''Dr.  Bowman,  I  absolutely 
have  no  use  for  a  man  who  is  a  counterfeit." 

I  witnessed  a  piece  of  heroism  which  will  match  his 
bear  and  lion  hunts.  It  was  on  a  hot  Fourth  of  July,  when 
five  thousand  people  had  gathered  in  an  open  lot  to  hear 
him  make  a  speech.  He  had  just  started  in  to  make  his 
addres/  and  a  fearful  thunderstorm,  with  pelting  rain, 
broke  upon  the  company.  The  water  came  down  in  buckets- 
ful.  Some  had  brought  umbrellas  and  raised  them;  some 
of  the  friends  undertook  to  hold  an  umbrella  over  the 
speaker's  head,  but  he  waved  them  away  and  kept  on  as 
though  nothing  were  happening.  He  continued  speaking  for 
about  half  an  hour  until  he  had  said  what  he  intended  to 
say.  He*  was  drenched  to  the  skin  and  so  were  many  others, 
for  almost  nobody  in  that  five  thousand  was  coward  enough 
to  leave  with  such  an  example  set  by  the  leader  of  the  na 
tion.  He  did  not  act  as  though  he  had  played  the  hero  in 
any  degree,  nor  did  he  apologize  for  giving  so  many 
thousands  a  ducking;  he  had  only  done  what  he  thought 
was  his  duty,  had  only  delivered  a  message  which  he  had 
felt  called  upon  to  bring  them. 

Mr.  Roosevelt  was  very  fond  of  fishing,  swimming  and 
boating.  One  summer  I  took  some  boys  camping  down  on 


284  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

Long  Island  Sound  on  the  shore  near  that  of  Sagamore 
Hill.  Colonel  Roosevelt  was  a  diligent,  enthusiastic,  suc 
cessful  fisherman,  and  his  children  took  to  the  water  as 
ducks  do.  I  remember  well  one  fishing  trip  I  had  with 
Quentin,  then  eight  or  nine  years  old,  and  Archie,  who  was 
older.  The  brightness  and  the  wit  of  the  boys  delighted 
and  entertained  me. 

Colonel  Roosevelt  was  a  fine  swimmer.  His  daughter, 
Ethel,  often  came  down  with  him  to  the  sound  for  a  swim. 
One  afternoon  I  saw  Mr.  Roosevelt  and  Miss  Ethel  plung 
ing  into  the  water  and  making  a  race  for  the  float  some 
distance  out  on  the  sound.  It  was  a  close  race,  each  reach 
ing  the  goal  about  the  same  time.  Miss  Ethel  dived  from 
the  float  and  swam  about  it  for  fifteen  or  twenty  minutes. 
Meanwhile  the  Colonel  walked  back  and  forth  on  the  float 
apparently  in  a  brown  study.  I  suspected  he  was  prepar 
ing  some  great  message  or  speech.  When  his  daughter  had 
finished  her  swim,  he  banished  his  serious  thoughts  and 
resumed  the  sporting  spirit,  and  the  two  dived  together  and 
made  a  race  back  to  the  shore. 

He  was  a  fine  oarsman ;  he  had  powerful  arms ;  they  were 
well  skilled,  and  he  made  his  boat  fairly  skip  through  the 
water.  I  am  pretty  strong  myself  and  apt  in  handling  the 
oars.  One  day  I  was  out  with  my  boat  and,  as  was  his 
custom,  Mrs.  Roosevelt  and  he  were  out  in  his  boat,  and  I 
said  to  myself,  "I  will  pass  him,"  and  so  I  hurried  and 
got  pretty  nearly  up  with  him  and  he  looked  back  and 
noticed  that  I  was  racing  him.  He  stuck  his  oars  into  the 
water,  multiplied  the  stroke  at  a  wonderful  rate  and  the 
gap  between  was  widened.  He  looked  back  at  me  laugh 
ingly,  as  much  as  to  say,  "Young  man,  you  must  grow  a 
little  older  before  you  can  pass  me." 

He  was  very  deeply  interested  in  the  temporal  as  well 
as  spiritual  interest  of  the  churches  of  Oyster  Bay.  All 
the  churches  of  whatever  denomination  were  aided  by  him 
financially  when  any  project  was  at  hand. 

Rev.  George  Farrar,  a  former  Methodist  pastor  of 
Oyster  Bay,  told  me  that,  when  certain  improvements 
were  made,  Colonel  Roosevelt  gave  him  a  check  for 
$50.00,  and  also  gave  him  a  lecture  of  his  hunting 
trip  in  Africa  which  netted  the  church  something  like 


FRIENDS   AT   OYSTER   BAY  285 

$100.00.  I  went  out  from  New  York  to  hear  that 
lecture.  I  listened  to  the  thrilling  incidents  of  a  man 
killed  this  way  and  that,  of  the  stealing  of  one  of 
his  negro  helpers  one  night  by  a  crocodile  which 
slipped  up  into  the  camp  and  went  off  with  him  down 
into  the  water,  and  as  he  was  about  closing  his  ad 
dress  I  said  to  him,  "Colonel,  you  did  not  tell  about 
that  close  shave  you  had  with  that  lion?"  He  an 
swered,  "Which  one?  We  had  several."  I  said, 
"That  big  man-eating  lion  that  charged  you  and 
which  you  stopped  just  in  time  to  keep  him  from  get 
ting  you."  "Oh!"  he  said,  "Yes,  a  large  fierce 
male  lion  came  toward  me.  I  could  not  see  the  beast, 
but  his  long  tail  reached  up  above  the  high  grass, 
and  at  every  leap  I  could  see  the  tail  coming  closer 
to  me,  till  at  last  I  found  he  certainly  was  wanting 
to  have  some  business  with  me,  and  I  was  just  as 
anxious  to  have  it  with  him.  And  when  he  got  close 
enough  I  let  him  have  the  bullet,  and  he  fell. ' '  Then 
he  paused  and  his  eye  twinkled  with  the  humor  which 
was  always  running  over  in  him.  He  said,  "My  old 
friend  here  has  come  out  to  hear  me  to-night  and 
you  perceive  that  he  knows  more  about  my  hunting 
trip  in  Africa  than  I  do  myself." 

Rev.  George  E.  Talmage,  rector  of  the  Episcopal 
church  in  Oyster  Bay  and  a  close  personal  friend  of 
Colonel  Roosevelt,  contributed  to  The  Churchman  an 
article  which  contained  material  he  thought  I  might 
desire.  This  is  the  story : 

While  Colonel  Roosevelt  occupied  a  modest  pew  near  the 
door,  the  people  of  the  parish  always  knew  when  he  was 
there,  which  was  generally  every  Sunday  morning.  If  he 
were  not  there,  they  knew  it  was  a  case  of  sickness  or 
absence  from  Oyster  Bay.  No  guests  kept  him  home  from 
church ;  if  they  did  not  wish  to  accompany  him,  they  amused 
themselves  alone  while  he  attended  church.  He  might  have 


286  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

got  more  profit  from  a  book  or  from  his  own  meditations  in 
the  woods,  but  he  felt  it  his  duty  to  attend  church  to  wor 
ship  God.  Said  a  man  to  him  one  day :  "I  can  worship  God 
just  as  well  in  the  woods."  His  reply  was  to  the  point: 
"Doubtless  you  can;  but  no  one  will  suspect  you  of  it." 
During  the  "gasless"  Sundays  last  fall,  when  many  made 
the  requirements  an  excuse  for  staying  home,  he  set  the 
example  of  loyalty  by  walking  three  miles  from  Sagamore 
Hill  to  the  village  church  and  back  home  again.  And  this, 
by  the  way,  was  shortly  after  his  return  from  a  serious* 
operation  which  affected  his  walking  not  a  little. 

There  were  friends  who  said  in  warning,  "You  will  find 
him  a  hard  man  to  preach  to;  he  is  so  positive  in  his  con 
victions."  Would  that  preachers  had  always  so  kindly  a 
critic  as  he — one  who  could  follow  what  they  say,  commend 
utterances  that  were  worth  while,  and  suggest  books  to 
read  if  the  views  were  divergent.  This  criticism,  always 
in  private,  might  take  the  form,  "I  liked  that  expression; 
may  I  use  it?"  or,  "While  I  did  not  agree  with  you,  I  en 
joyed  your  presentation.  But,  have  you  read  such-and-such 
a  book?  It  is  very  illuminating."  When  the  House  of 
Bishops  issued  its  pastoral  on  support  of  the  government 
and  refraining  from  criticism,  and  a  copy  of  the  pastoral 
was  handed  him  by  the  rector,  how  characteristic  was  the 
reply :  '"That  is  all  very  well.  But  how  can  I  keep  still 
when  1  know?" 

There  are  other  parts  of  church  work  besides  attendance 
at  services  and  listening  to  sermons.  The  great  work  of  the 
church  is  missions.  One  anecdote  will  suffice.  One  hot 
Sunday  morning  a  missionary  bishop  was  preaching.  So 
hot  it  was  that  his  collar  was  not  visible  at  the  end  of  the 
service.  An  offering  was  announced  for  the  following  Sun 
day  morning.  As  we  were  dismissing  the  choir  the  door 
again  opened,  the  bishop  was  greeted  most  cordially  and  a 
bill  was  placed  in  the  hand  of  the  rector  with  the  brief 
words:  "1  will  not  be  here  next  Sunday,  but  I  want  to  do 
my  part." 

We  have  a  little  missionary  group  known  as  St.  Hilda's, 
which  meets  each  week  for  sewing,  to  which  Mrs.  Roose 
velt  belongs  and  in  which  Mr.  Roosevelt  took  a  great  in 
terest.  It  was  their  custom  to  invite  the  members  to  a 
reception  every  year.  During  the  Presidential  term  one  of 
these  receptions  was  on  the  Mayflower,  then  anchored  in 


FRIENDS   AT   OYSTER   BAY  287 

the  harbor.  It  was  a  highly  honored  group  to  be  permitted 
this  friendship,  for  it  was  a  sincere  and  personal  relation 
ship.  Never  a  sorrow  entered  their  homes  but  sympathy 
came  from  Sagamore  Hill,  and  not  infrequently  a  personal 
visit  as  well. 

Of  course  the  parish  has  a  Sunday  school.  Looking  over 
the  old  registers  one  finds  the  family  represented  on  the 
roll.  Once  each  year,  on  Christmas  Eve,  the  Colonel  nim- 
self  spoke  to  the  school,  receiving  his  orange  and  oox  of 
candy  with  the  other  members  of  the  school  and  joining 
heartily  in  the  singing  of  our  historic  carol,  doubly  dear  to 
us  henceforth,  because  he  loved  it.  The  children  and  their 
parents  little  realized  their  privilege  in  listening  to  those 
familiar  talks.  For  example,  after  the  South  American  trip 
they  had  the  opportunity  of  hearing  informally  what  many 
traveled  miles  to  meetings  of  great  geographical  societies 
to  hear.  They  felt  he  was  one  of  themselves,  but  they  did 
not  know  how  great  he  was. 

Space  fails  to  tell  of  his  relationship  to  various  guilds. 
There  would  be  anecdotes  connected  with  them  all,  and 
this  article  might  resemble  the  Analects  of  Confucius.  But 
a  reference  may  be  made  to  the  Boy  Scouts.  When  Gen 
eral  Baden-Powell  was  in  this  country  in  the  interest  of 
the  new  movement,  there  was  an  informal  luncheon  at 
Sagamore  Hill,  at  which  the  general  and  some  men  promi 
nent  in  the  movement  were  present.  The  rector,  although 
of  little  importance  to  the  conference,  was  invited  to  meet 
them.  He  was  introduced  as  "my  pastor,"  and  while  the 
men  tried  their  best  to  commit  the  Colonel  to  their  cause 
they  got  no  further  than  this — that  he  pointed  out  the  im 
portance  of  the  individual  scout  master,  and  turned  the 
discussion  to  a  consideration  of  the  merits  of  men  in  the 
village  who  might  be  fitted  for  such  leadership.  Without 
doubt  the  invitation  to  the  local  pastor  was  for  the  very 
purpose  of  so  turning  the  discussion.  Later  on  he  took  a 
prominent  place  in  the  movement,  and  when  the  Roosevelt 
Troop  of  Boy  Scouts  was  organized  in  the  parish,  consented 
to  serve  and  did  serve  on  the  troop  committee. 

The  picture  of  the  Colonel  which  will  be  most  prized  is 
not  that  of  the  Rough  Rider,  nor  the  President,  nor  the 
orator,  but  the  grandfather,  hugging  his  little  grandchild. 
How  he  loved  the  children !  What  interest  he  took  in  their 
baptism,  standing  sponsor  near  the  font !  How  he  rejoiced 


288  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

in  their  confirmation!  Pride  they  may  well  have  in  later 
years,  but  reverence  and  love  will  be  the  dominant  note  of 
their  esteem.  The  Colonel  was  a  man  of  family,  a  man  of 
peace,  but  how  anxious  he  was  to  serve  his  country  that 
his  grandchildren  might  live  in  peace!  He  gave  his  sons 
when  he  could  not  gfve  himself. 

One  recalls  that  Sunday  morning  before  Quentin  sailed, 
how  he  came  to  church  for  his  last  communion.  We  felt 
it  would  be  the  last.  We  talked  otherwise.  Then  came 
the  letter  from  abroad  in  which  was  written,  "I  have  just 
been  to  service  in  Notre  Dame  Cathedral.  It  was  fine. 
But  I  would  rather  have  been  in  Christ  Church."  And 
then  came  the  cable  message,  and  early  next  morning,  when 
so  many  would  have  stayed  away,  the  parents  drew  near 
to  the  same  altar  rail.  There  were  no  dry  eyes,  and  the 
words  could  scarcely  be  spoken,  but  their  force  was  there: 
"Preserve  thy  body  and  soul  unto  everlasting  life."  This 
time  also  it  was  a  last  communion,  but  we  did  not  know  it. 


HIS  RELIGION 


CHAPTER  XXI 
HIS     RELIGION 

IN  estimating  Theodore  Roosevelt's  greatness  the 
religious  element  must  not  be  left  out  or  min 
imized.     From  both  parents  he  inherited  the 
deepest  religious  instincts.    He  was  trained  in  a  home 
singularly  devout.    At  the  age  of  sixteen  he  joined 
the  Dutch  Reformed  Church. 

Rev.  Dr.  James  M.  Ludlow,  under  whom  the  boy 
Theodore  joined  the  church,  lives  now  in  East  Orange, 
N.  J.  He  has  had  long  and  successful  pastorates  in 
the  Dutch  Reformed  Church,  is  an  author  of  some 
note  and  was  pastor  of  the  St.  Nicholas  Reformed 
church  of  New  York  City  at  the  time  when  Theodore 
united  with  the  church.  Dr.  Ludlow  said  to  me  that 
he  had  the  tenderest,  most  loving  memory  "of  the 
boy  who  sat  in  that  pew."  He  told  of  becoming  pas 
tor  of  the  church  fifty  years  ago  and  of  how  four 
years  later,  when  the  new  building  was  opened,  the 
parents  of  Theodore  Roosevelt  came  to  worship  there. 
"Theodore  Roosevelt,  the  youth,  was  quick-minded, 
and  he  had  a  marvelous  power  of  observing  passing 
things,"  Dr.  Ludlow  continued.  "He  thought  of 
what  he  saw.  Some  one  once  asked  him  in  what  part 
of  the  body  the  mind  was  located.  He  replied:  'In 
Theodore  Roosevelt  it  is  right  back  of  the  eye-balls ! ' 
We  all  predicted  that  he  would  make  his  mark,  but 

291 


292  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

where  that  would  be  was  uncertain,  he  was  so  versa 
tile.  Whether  his  mark  would  be  on  the  north  pole 
or  in  the  field  of  literature,  we  did  not  know,  but  we 
never  dreamed  that  he  would  mark  it  on  the  walls  of 
the  White  House  or  on  the  locks  of  the  Panama  Canal. 
He  was  always  the  great  big  boy  of  the  people.  He 
was  one  of  a  number  of  sons  of  wealthy  and  noble 
parentage  who  were  especially  promising  boys. 

"Forty-four  years  ago  just  now,  Theodore,  then 
sixteen  years  of  age,  called  at  my  study  and  said: 
'I  have  come  to  have  a  little  talk  with  you  upon  a 
personal  matter.  I  would  like  to  become  a  member 
of  the  church.  You  know  how  strictly  I  have  been 
raised  religiously  in  Christian  faith  and  denomina 
tional  doctrine,  and  I  feel  now  as  if  I  ought  to  unite 
with  the  church.  I  feel  that  one  who  believes  so  firmly 
in  the  Bible  and  in  Christianity  as  I  do,  should  say 
BO  publicly,  and  enter  openly  into  the  active  service 
of  the  church;  to  drill  with  the  troops  and  fight  in 
the  battle-front  with  the  soldiers  of  the  Cross.  To 
join  a  church  now  will  do  me  good  personally  and 
will  be  in  obedience  to  the  express  command  of  Christ. 
I  want  to  be  a  witness  for  Christ;  a  doer  of  the 
word.'  "  The  doctor  then  said,  "I  examined  him 
and  felt  that  he  was  an  excellent  candidate  for  church 
membership.  I  handed  him  over  to  the  Consistory, 
who  were  much  pleased  with  him,  and  he  was  con 
firmed  in  the  church,  and  remained  a  consistent  and 
honored  member  of  the  St.  Nicholas  church  until  the 
day  of  his  death.  My  opportunities  for  knowing  his 
boyhood  life  were  not  nearly  so  good  as  those  of  Dr. 
Adams,  who  was  his  father's  pastor  for  a  long  term 
of  years.  Soon  after  Theodore  united  with  the  church 
he  was  taken  by  his  parents  on  long  journeys,  one  of 
them  to  the  Far  East;  he  spent  his  summers  in  the 


HIS   EELIGION  293 

country  and  then  went  to  college,  after  which  we 
never  saw  much  of  him.  Of  course,  I  have  a  feeling 
of  just  pride  that  he  was  a  member  of  the  Dutch  Re 
formed  church  and  that  I  had  the  privilege  of  open 
ing  the  doorway  of  the  church  to.  him.  The  honor  I 
feel  is  not  so  much  that  he  was  a  very  brilliant  man 
intellectually,  that  he  occupied  high  office  or  com 
manded  the  plaudits  of  the  people,  as  that  lie  was  a 
sincere  Christian  man  and  devoted  himself  to  the  ser 
vice  of  his  f ellowmen  and  his  Divine  Master. ' ' 

Soon  after  Theodore  joined  the  church  he  felt  the 
necessity  of  putting  his  profession  into  practice,  show 
ing  his  faith  by  his  works ;  and  so  he  became  a  teacher 
in  a  mission  Sunday  school  and  taught  the  poor,  neg 
lected  little  fellows  the  way  to  Jesus,  to  a  right  life 
and  to  heaven,  and  taught  it  for  two  years  until  he 
went  to  Harvard  and  there  continued  this  class  of 
service  till  his  graduation,  and  in  every  department 
of  church  activity  and  church  benevolence  he  was  in 
the  forefront  until  the  day  of  his  death. 

Theodore  Roosevelt  was  one  of  the  most  profoundly 
religious  men  this  nation  or  any  other  nation  ever 
had.  He  was  one  of  the  most  powerful  believers  I 
ever  saw;  and  one  of  the  most  prodigious  religious 
actors  I  ever  beheld.  Religion  is  a  science  and  an  art. 
As  a  science  it  is  a  system  of  doctrines  to  be  believed, 
as  an  art  it  is  a  system  of  duties  to  be  performed. 
Mr.  Roosevelt  had  the  science  of  religion  down  to 
a  perfection  in  the  most  simple  and  sincere  faith  in 
the  cardinal  doctrines  of  our  religion,  and  he  prac 
ticed  it  vigorously,  as  an  art,  in  the  multitude  of 
secular  acts.  He  believed  firmly  in  knowing  the  will 
of  God ;  but  he  put  the  heavy  emphasis  of  his  life  on 
doing  that  will  in  every  day  life,  for  after  all  religion 
consists  as  much  or  more  in  doing  secular  things, 


294  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

from  a  religious  motive,  as  in  doing  the  religious 
things  themselves.  God  has  so  planned  it  that  we  are 
to  spend  most  of  our  time  in  so-called  secular  ser 
vice;  but  the  religious  motive  sanctifies  it  and  makes 
all  of  life  sacred.  That  was  the  theology  and  practice 
of  Theodore  Roosevelt. 

A  most  complete  illustration  of  his  devotion  to  doc 
trine  and  duty,  to  faith  and  works,  is  furnished  in 
an  address  which  he  made  to  the  men's  Bible  class 
in  the  Methodist  church  at  Oyster  Bay. 

He  had  accepted  the  invitation  of  Rev.  W.  I.  Bow 
man,  the  pastor  of  the  church,  to  address  the  brother 
hood  and  the  appointment  was  made  for  four  o'clock. 
Invitations  were  sent  to  other  congregations,  and  the 
church  was  crowded,  and  thousands  of  people  stood 
on  the  outside.  The  President  came  down  from  Saga 
more  Hill,  at  the  appointed  hour,  with  his  own  little 
Bible,  which  bore  the  evidence  of  much  wear.  As 
his  Scripture  Lesson  he  read  I.  Corinthians,  thir 
teenth  chapter,  whose  first  three  verses  are :  ' '  Though 
I  speak  with  the  tongues  of  men  and  of  angels,  and 
have  not  charity,  I  am  become  as  sounding  brass, 
or  a  tinkling  cymbal.  And  though  I  have  the  gift  of 
prophecy,  and  understand  all  mysteries,  and  all  knowl 
edge;  and  though  I  have  all  faith,  so  that  I  could 
remove  mountains,  and  have  not  charity,  I  am  noth 
ing.  And  though  I  bestow  all  my  goods  to  feed  the 
poor,  and  though  I  give  my  body  to  be  burned,  and 
have  not  charity,  it  profiteth  me  nothing/'  And 
whose  last  verse  is:  "And  now  abideth  faith,  hope, 
charity,  these  three ;  but  the  greatest  of  these  is  char- 
ity." 

No  man  of  our  times  ever  incarnated  that  chapter 
more  completely  than  Theodore  Roosevelt.  His  life 
was  one  continuous  expression  of  love  to  God  and  fel- 


HIS   RELIGION  295 

lowmen.  He  believed  that  love  was  everything,  and  he 
acted  out  the  love  which  he  believed,  insistently,  from 
the  time  he  entered  the  stage  of  action  till  the  time  he 
left  it. 

He  preached  a  real  sermon  to  the  brotherhood. 
His  subject  was  that  men  must  practice  the  religion 
which  they  profess,  and  that,  if  they  do  not  practice 
it,  they  are  self-deceived  in  counting  themselves  pro 
fessors.  He  took  as  his  main  text  James  1:22:  "  But 
be  ye  doers  of  the  word,  and  not  hearers  only,  de 
ceiving  your  own  selves. ' '  During  his  sermon  he  had 
a  slip  of  paper  on  which  he  had  jotted  down  different 
texts,  which  he  made  the  basis  of  the  various  divisions 
of  his  message.  Some  one  in  the  audience  saw  that 
slip  and  asked  Dr.  Bowman  if  he  could  secure  it  for 
him  as  a  souvenir,  and  the  pastor  wrote  the  President 
and  received  from  him  the  following  answer: 

DEAB  BROTHER  BOWMAN  : 

I  have  taken  pleasure  in  autographing  the  memorandum 
of  those  texts. 
With  all  good  wishes,  believe  me, 

Faithfully  yours, 

(Signed)  THEODORE  ROOSEVELT. 

The  memorandum  of  texts  was  as  follows : 
Matt.  7 : 1. 

"Judge  not,  that  ye  be  not  judged." 
Matt.  7 : 16. 

"Ye  shall  know  them  by  their  fruits.     Do  men  gather 
grapes  of  thorns,  or  figs  of  thistles?" 
Matt.  25 :  37-40. 

"Then  shall  the  righteous  answer  him,  saying,  Lord, 
when  saw  we  thee  an  hungered,  and  fed  thee?  or  thirsty, 
and  gave  thee  drink? 

"When  saw  we  thee  a  stranger,  and  took  thee  in?  or 
naked,  and  clothed  thee? 

"Or  when  saw  we  thee  sick,  or  in  prison,  and  came 
unto  thee? 


296  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

"And  the  King  shall  answer  and  say  unto  them,  Verily 
I  say  unto  you,  Inasmuch  as  ye  have  done  it  unto  one 
of  the  least  of  these   My  brethren,  ye  have  done  it  unto 
Me." 
James  1 : 27. 

"Pure  religion  and  undefiled  before  God  and  the  Father 
is  this :  To  visit  the  fatherless  and  widows  in  their  afflic 
tion,  and  to  keep  himself  unspotted  from  the  world." 
James  3 : 17,  18. 

"But  the  wisdom  that  is  from  above  is  first  pure,  then 
peaceable,  gentle,  and  easy  to  be  entreated,  full  of  mercy 
and  good  fruits,  without  partiality,  and  without  hypo 
crisy. 

"And  the  fruit  of  righteousness  is  sown  in  peace  of  them 
that  make  peace." 

Those  texts,  that  seem  to  include  about  all  of  human 
living,  the  preacher  practiced  to  the  minutest  detail. 

His  love  for  the  missionary  cause  and  his  respect 
for  the  ministry  are  illustrated  by  this  incident : 

At  the  White  House  one  day,  and  in  a  confidential 
chat  with  the  President,  I  told  him  one  of  my  sons 
was  going  as  a  missionary  to  Japan.  He  instantly 
said  with  deep  feeling,  "Oh,  I  am  so  glad.  I  am  so 
proud  of  that  boy  and  I  feel  so  proud  for  you.  God 
bless  him  and  bless  you. ' '  He  said,  l '  I  have  told  you 
so  many  times  that  I  consider  the  Christian  ministry 
as  the  highest  calling  in  the  world,  most  intimately 
related  to  the  most  exalted  life  and  service  here  and 
destiny  beyond,  and  I  consider  it  my  greatest  joy 
and  glory  that,  occupying  a  most  exalted  position 
in  the  nation,  I  am  enabled,  simply  and  sincerely,  to 
preach  the  practical  moralities  of  the  Bible  to  my  fel 
low-countrymen  and  to  hold  up  Christ  as  the  hope 
and  savior  of  the  world.  I  believe  down  deep  in  my 
soul,  as  you  know,  my  friend,  that  I  have  preached 
the  same  gospel  that  you  and  your  boy  are  called  to 
preach. 


HIS  RELIGION  297 

"  As  high  an  estimate  as  I  have  of  the  ministry, 
I  consider  that  the  climax  of  that  calling  is  to  go  out 
in  missionary  service,  as  your  son  is  doing.  It  takes 
mighty  good  stuff  to  be  a  missionary  of  the  right  type, 
the  best  stuff  there  is  in  this  world.  It  takes  a  deal 
of  courage  to  break  the  shell  and  go  twelve  thousand 
miles  away  to  risk  an  unfriendly  climate,  to  master  a 
foreign  language,  perhaps  the  most  difficult  one  on 
earth  to  learn ;  to  adopt  strange  customs,  to  turn  aside 
from  earthly  fame  and  emolument  and,  most  of  all, 
to  say  good-bye  to  home  and  the  faces  of  the  loved 
ones  virtually  forever. 

"And  yet  your  boy  does  not  count  this  going  as  a 
hardship  at  all,  but  as  an  honor,  a  glory,  a  joy,  and 
not  a  sacrifice."  He  said,  not  at  my  suggestion,  but 
out  of  his  loving  instincts,  "I  am  going  to  help  that 
boy  all  I  can;  I  am  going  to  put  myself  and  Uncle 
Sam  behind  him  and  help  him  in  his  introduction  to 
the  field  and  in  his  work  there,  as  much  as  possible. 
Why  should  we  not  do  so?  He  is  our  American  boy 
as  well  as  your  son.  I  will  write  a  letter  to  Mr.  Lloyd 
Griscom,  our  United  States  minister  to  Japan,  which 
your  boy  can  present  on  his  arrival  at  Tokio. ' ' 

He  sent  me  that  letter.  In  it  he  told  Mr.  Griscom 
that  the  bearer  was  a  Methodist  missionary,  the  son 
of  an  old  personal  friend  of  his,  and  asked  him  to  do 
everything  in  his  power  to  promote  his  success  in 
that  field.  The  letter  was  on  state  paper  in  letters 
like  copper  plate,  signed  in  the  little  hand-writing, 
"Theodore  Roosevelt,  President  of  the  United  States." 
The  letter  was  in  a  very  large,  beautiful,  official  en 
velope,  and  I  wished  so  much  that  I  might  be  enabled 
to  keep  it  myself  as  an  heirloom  in  the  family,  but 
it  went  on  its  beneficent  errand  and  made  a  fitting 
doorway  of  entrance  into  service  in  the  Capital  and 


298  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

Empire  of  Japan.  That  letter  was  worth  years  of 
service  in  the  start.  The  people  thought  that  he 
must  be  some  distinguished  person  to  bring  such  a 
letter  from  so  great  a  man,  and  he  had  state  privi 
leges  and  permits  and  opportunities  for  extended  use 
fulness.  The  boy  wrote  us  that  under  one  of  these 
permits  he  was  admitted  into  one  of  the  inner  spaces 
in  the  public  park  with  its  cherry  blooms  in  company 
with  the  royalty  there  assembled;  and  that  the  late 
Mikado,  whose  face  was  seldom  allowed  to  be  seen  by 
the  public  because  they  counted  him  a  god,  was  so 
close  to  him  that  he  could  have  touched  him  with  a 
fishing-pole. 

The  next  time  I  saw  the  President,  I  told  him  how 
lovely  the  letter  to  Mr.  Griscom  was  and  how  sweet 
it  was  in  him  to  send  it.  I  told  him  I  had  heard  from 
the  boy  and  that  he  said  in  his  letter  that  the  happiest 
moment  of  his  life  was  when  he  stepped  his  feet  on 
the  island  of  Japan.  The  President  said, ' '  You  noticed 
that  I  sent  the  letter  to  Mr.  Griscom  as  an  official 
document,  did  you  not,  and  asked  him  as  a  repre 
sentative  of  our  government  to  stand  behind  your  son 
in  his  mission?  I  did  not  consider  that  America 
has  any  relation  to  Japan  which  is  higher  or  more 
far-reaching  than  the  education,  morals,  and  religion 
that  the  missionary  carries  to  that  country." 

At  the  White  House  one  day  President  Roosevelt 
came  into  his  room,  greeted  me  cordially,  as  was  his 
custom,  and  then  slipped  over  to  another  gentleman 
and  greeted  him.  He  brought  that  gentleman  over 
to  where  I  was,  and  said,  "Dr.  Iglehart,  permit  me 

to  introduce  to  you  Father  ,  who  has 

been  doing  very  important  work  among  the  Indians 
and  has  come  to  talk  with  me  about  it."  And  then, 
placing  himself  between  us,  he  said, ' '  Here 's  the  great 


HIS   RELIGION  299 

Catholic  church,  with  its  millions  represented  by  this 
Catholic  priest,  on  one  side  of  me,  and  here  on  the 
other  is  the  great  Methodist  church,  with  its  millions 
represented  by  my  old  friend,  and  I  am  only  a  poor 
little  Dutch  Reform  layman  between  the  two."  The 
twinkle  in  his  eye  evidenced  the  fun  that  was  always 
bubbling  over  within  him.  I  replied,  * '  No,  Mr.  Presi 
dent,  you  are  not  the  poor  little  Dutch  Reform  lay 
man  between  them.  You  are  the  great  head  of  the 
nation  and  a  Christian  with  a  universal  heart.  You 
are  large  enough  to  belong  to  all  the  churches  and  all 
of  us  claim  you  as  such,  and  we  have  reason  to  be 
lieve  that  you  consider  that  all  of  us  belong  to  you/' 

He  warmed  up  instantly  and  answered,  "My  friend, 
you  are  quite  right.  I  have  the  profoundest  respect 
and  warmest  affection  for  all  denominations,  Protes 
tant,  Catholic  and  Hebrew.  In  my  individual  contact 
with  men  I  have  found  the  most  splendid  people 
imaginable  holding  these  various  beliefs,  and  in  my 
public  administration  on  all  questions  of  moral  re 
form,  and  those  questions  you  know  I  consider  para 
mount;  the  Protestant  minister,  the  Catholic  priest 
and  the  Jewish  rabbi,  and  the  millions  that  they  rep 
resent,  have  vied  with  each  other  in  sustaining  me, 
and  my  arm  has  been  as  strong  as  the  millions  that 
they  represent,  in  smiting  evil  and  in  building  up  the 
right.  You  can  see  how  correct  you  were  in  saying 
that  I  belong  to  all  of  you  and  that  all  of  you  be 
long  to  me." 

Cardinal  Gibbons,  at  my  request,  sent  these  words 
with  reference  to  his  dear  friend,  Colonel  Roosevelt: 

MY  DEAR  ME.  IGLEHART  : 

In  reply  to  your  esteemed  letter,  asking  for  an  estimate 
of  Mr.  Roosevelt,  I  wish  to  say  that  my  relations  with  him 
were  of  a  most  intimate  character  from  the  time  he  en- 


300  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

tered  the  White  House  up  until  the  day  of  his  death.  Be 
sides  I  had  much  correspondence  with  him,  all  of  a  nature 
too  sacred  to  be  made  public.  I  ever  regarded  Mr.  Roose 
velt  as  the  typical  American,  the  embodiment  of  the  highest 
patriotism. 

Faithfully  yours, 

(Signed)          J.  CABD.  GIBBONS. 

The  Rev.  Dr.  James  Malcolm  MacLeod,  pastor  of 
the  St.  Nicholas  Reformed  church  of  New  York,  the 
one  which  Theodore  Roosevelt  joined  as  a  boy  and  of 
which  he  remained  a  member  until  his  death,  at  a 
beautiful  memorial  service  in  his  church  emphasized 
this  breadth  of  undenominational  vision  and  apprecia 
tion  in  these  words:  "Theodore  Roosevelt  was  bigger 
than  any  creed,  bigger  than  any  church  or  denomina 
tional  harness  of  any  kind.  He  belonged  to  what  we 
hope  will  be  the  Great  American  church.  He  loved 
all  the  churches — Protestant,  Jewish,  and  Catholic. 
His  passing  away  brought  sorrow  into  every  religious 
fellowship  in  our  land.  He  was  a  great  American  and 
a  great  Christian." 

In  confirmation  of  the  statement  the  President  made 
to  me  about  his  belief  in  all  denominations,  claiming 
all  denominations  as  his  own,  I  give  here  the  estimate 
of  Rabbi  Henry  Pereira  Mendes,  one  of  the  most  emi 
nent  Hebrew  scholars  in  America,  and  who  has  for 
forty-two  years  been  in  charge  of  the  Spanish  and 
Portuguese  synagogue  in  the  fashionable  district  of 
Central  Park  West.  He  says : 

The  question  of  what  kind  of  a  man  Roosevelt  was  is  of 
tremendous  importance,  but  more  so  is  the  question  what 
kind  of  men  his  memory  inspires  us  to  be.  It  is  little  use 
saying  he  awakened  conscience,  touched  the  heart,  and  was 
a  great  moral  force,  unless  we  feel  that  he  has  awakened 
our  conscience,  touched  our  hearts  and  made  us  a  moral 
force  in  our  own  little  world  of  society,  politics  and  family. 


HIS  KELIGION  301 

We  can  imagine  such  a  man  in  past  years  of  our  Ameri 
can-Jewish  history,  and  thereby  estimate  his  worth. 

Had  he  lived  in  1665,  when  the  first  Jewish  settlers  ar 
rived  and  Peter  Stuyvesant  andean  influential  minister  ob 
jected  to  their  presence,  objected"  to  their  building  a  syna 
gogue,  how  he  would  have  thundered  at  such  bigoted  nar 
rowness  ! 

When  those  brave  refugees  from  the  cruelty  of  the  In 
quisition  demanded  the  right  of  holding  a  burial-place  for 
their  dead,  as  they  did,  how,  had  he  lived  then,  he  would 
have  exclaimed  against  the  inhumanity  of  the  denial  of 
their  request!  How  he  would  have  scorned  the  intolerance 
which  subjected  those  early  Jews,  men  of  high  culture,  men 
of  Spanish  dignity,  men  of  high  integrity,  to  such  injustice ! 
If  a  few  years  later  he  heard  Asser  Levy,  one  of  the  early 
Jewish  settlers,  demand  the  right  to  serve  in  the  town 
guard,  only  to  meet  with  refusal,  how  he  would  have 
boiled  with  indignation!  And  when  in  1665  instructions 
came  to  Stuyvesant  from  Holland  to  yield  to  the  request 
of  the  Jews,  and  when  in  1666  similar  pressure  compelled 
Stuyvesant  to  yield  to  the  request  of  the  Jews  to  be  al 
lowed  to  purchase  a  cemetery,  how  Roosevelt  would  have 
smitten  his  thigh  with  glee  and  satisfaction! 

In  the  Revolutionary  War,  the  Rev.  Gershon  Mendes 
Seixes,  minister  of  this  congregation,  closed  the  doors  of 
the  synagogue  during  the  British  occupation  of  New  York 
rather  than  continue  conducting  services  under  British  con 
ditions.  Was  not  that  true  American  patriotism?  If 
Roosevelt  had  been  alive  then,  how  he  would  have  gloried 
in  it! 

And  if  he  had  heard  the  story  of  the  Jew  Gomez,  telling 
the  sergeant  who  rejected  his  application  for  enlistment  on 
the  ground  of  his  being  too  old,  "I  am  not  too  old  to  stop 
a  British  bullet !"  how  Roosevelt's  heart  would  have  leaped 
for  joy.  He  would  have  slapped  the  old  man  on  the  shoul 
der,  endorsing  his  true  patriotism !  And  if  he  had  been 
living  when  Solomon  helped  to  finance  the  American  Revo 
lution,  how  emphatically  he  would  have  proclaimed  his 
satisfaction ! 

Plain-spoken,  outspoken,  he  always  was.  He  would  have 
spoken  plainly  then  had  he  lived  in  those  days,  and  his 
example  inspires  us,  his  admirers  of  to-day,  to  speak  out 
and  speak  plainly  when  occasion  offers! 


302  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

The  trouble  is  that  most  of  us  are  un-Rooseveltian ;  we 
prefer  to  be  passive;  we  are  passivists.  But  a  passivlst 
Roosevelt  certainly  was  not. 

The  elements  were  so  combined  in  him  that  all  the  world 
might  say  when  they  saw  him,  "There  goes  a  man!"  He 
was  blessed  with  a  strong  virility,  a  remarkable  person 
ality  and  a  capturing  geniality. 

He  had  critics.  What  great  man  has  escaped  criticism? 
Who  was  more  cruelly  abused  than  Washington?  Who 
was  more  constantly  attacked  than  Lincoln,  whose  admin 
istration  was  ridiculed,  vilified  and  condemned  more  than 
his?  "If  I  were  to  try  to  read,"  Lincoln  once  said,  "much 
less  to  answer,  all  the  attacks  made  on  me,  this  shop  might 
as  well  be  closed  for  any  other  business.  I  do  the  very 
best  I  can,  and  I  intend  to  keep  doing  so  to  the  end.  If 
the  end  brings  me  out  all  right,  what  is  said  against  me 
won't  amount  to  anything.  If  the  end  brings  me  out 
wrong,  ten  angels  swearing  I  was  right  would  make  no 
difference !" 

Just  such  a  man  was  Roosevelt.  He  spoke  for  the  right, 
he  acted  for  the  right  and  thought  for  the  right  as  did 
Lincoln,  to  the  best  of  his  ability.  His  example  will  in 
spire  us  to  act  for  the  right,  speak  for  the  right,  and  think 
for  the  right  as  far  as  in  our  power  lies. 

In  the  perspective  of  history  Mr.  Roosevelt  will  loom 
larger  yet,  for  he  was  the  idealization  of  what  an  Ameri 
can  ought  to  be  and  what  the  word  American  stands  for. 
The  nation  is  profoundly  impressed  by  his  patriotism,  his 
generous  life,  his  fearlessness.  As  a  Jewish  minister,  I 
cannot  forget  that  Mr.  Roosevelt,  when  Police  Commis 
sioner,  with  grim  humor  discharged  his  duty  as  Police 
Commissioner  to  protect  a  notorious  antisemitic  agitator 
but  assigned  the  duty  to  Jewish  policemen.  The  agitator 
was  a  German,  and  we  wonder  whether  he  saw  the  humor 
of  the  situation;  he,  himself,  lecturing  on  antisemitism  in 
Cooper  Union,  protected  by  Jewish  policemen !  Commis 
sioner  Roosevelt  never  ceased  to  praise  his  Jewish  police 
men,  some  of  whom  were  fast  friends  till  the  day  of  his 
death. 

He  was  always  ready  to  lend  a  hand,  and  it  was  always 
a  very  vigorous  hand,  to  promote  justice  and  righteousness. 
One  day  he  is  pledging  and  giving  support  and  cooperation 
in  a  movement  to  benefit  women  employees.  Another  day 


HIS   RELIGION  303 

we  find  Mm,  as  Chief  Magistrate,  calling  Mr.  Hay,  the 
Secretary  of  State,  to  give  him  instructions  to  draw  up 
and  send  to  the  Rumanian  government  a  protest  against 
its  reprehensible  actions  against  the  Jews.  One  day  he  is 
pleading  for  an  Armenian  or  a  Belgian,  just  as  years  before 
he  tried  to  convert  the  Czar's  government  to  justice  for 
the  Jew.  And  on  yet  another  day  we  find  him  like  a 
statesman,  looking  forward  for  his  country's  benefit,  as 
in  the  famous  Panama  transaction.  He  was  a  great  man. 
Let  us  see  to  it  that  the  memory  of  his  greatness  shall  help 
to  make  us  great.  He  was  a  good  man.  We  must  see 
that  his  memory  inspire  us  to  live  the  good  clean  life  that 
he  did.  He  was  a  brave  man.  His  courage  must  move  us 
to  be  brave  enough  to  stand  for  the  right  as  he  did 

This  estimate  of  Rabbi  Mendes  has  special  signifi 
cance  from  the  fact  that  twenty-four  years  ago  he 
helped  Commissioner  Roosevelt  to  enforce  the  law 
closing  the  saloons  on  Sunday.  I  shall  never  forget 
his  words  at  a  certain  public  hearing  on  the  question. 
Some  of  our  Christian  ministers  had  urged  the  en 
forcement  of  the  law,  but  were  quite  particular  to 
state  that  they  asked  for  the  enforcement  not  because 
it  was  a  religious  command,  but  because  it  was  a 
civil  law,  thinking  that  that  plea  would  have  the 
greatest  weight  with  the  Mayor.  When  it  was  Rabbi 
Mendes'  turn  to  speak,  he  said  that  "while  he  would 
ask  for  the  enforcement  of  the  law  because  it  was  on 
the  statute  books,  he  asked  for  it  even  on  stronger 
ground,  and  that  was  that  it  was  a  divine  command 
that  one  day  out  of  seven  for  rest  was  necessary  for 
the  health  of  body,  mind  and  soul,  and  that  all  civil 
laws  were  simply  based  on  that  elemental  principle. ' ' 
He  said,  "Let  the  stores  close,  let  the  wheels  of  in 
dustries  stop,  certainly  let  the  places  of  dissipation 
and  demoralization  be  closed  and  let  the  people  have 
one  day  in  the  week  for  rest  and  for  the  worship 
of  Almighty  God." 


304  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

When  Theodore  Roosevelt  began  his  political  life 
in  New  York  City,  he  joined  a  Republican  club.  A 
name  was  proposed  for  membership,  and  some  persons 
determined  to  blackball  the  candidate  because  he  was 
a  Jew.  Mr.  Roosevelt  heard  of  the  threat  and  re 
buked  those  who  had  made  it  in  the  most  stinging 
words  and  cried  out,  " Shame  on  you!  Shame  on 
you  to  allow  your  prejudice  against  the  man's  re 
ligion  to  so  blind  you  to  his  excellent  character !  This 
man  proposed  I  know.  I  know  him  to  be  an  honest 
man  and  a  gentleman,  and  if  he  is  to  be  blackballed 
because  he  is  a  Jew  I  should  feel  very  much  like  re 
signing  from  the  club  right  away."  The  opposition 
was  ended  and  the  man  was  elected  to  membership 
by  a  unanimous  vote  and  became  a  most  vigorous, 
useful  and  honored  member  of  the  circle.  That  was 
the  Roosevelt  of  our  country  and  the  Roosevelt  of  the 
world,  who  loved  all  denominations  which  were  trying 
to  do  the  Lord's  work,  and  was  idolized  by  them  all. 

Jason,  who  led  the  forty-nine  most  brilliant  young 
men  of  Greece  on  the  journey  to  secure  the  Golden 
Fleece  and  his  crown,  is  reputed  in  the  stories  of  the 
Greek  gods  to  have  accomplished  miracles  by  divine 
direction.  He  was  ordered  by  the  gods  to  take  the 
piece  of  a  limb  from  the  oak  of  Dodona  and  hare  it 
turned  into  the  face  of  a  woman.  This  he  nailed  to 
the  bow  of  his  ship.  He  consulted  it  continually,  and 
it  was  said  to  have  told  him  where  to  go  and  what 
to  do. 

Theodore  Roosevelt,  in  accomplishing  the  miracles 
of  his  lifetime,  had  a  crucified  and  risen  Savior  be 
fore  his  eyes,  whom  he  consulted  at  every  step  of  life, 
who  told  him  where  to  go,  what  to  say,  and  what  to 
do — to  bless  his  f  ellowmen  and  secure  his  crown. 


ROOSEVELT  AND  THE  BIBLE 


CHAPTER  XXII 
KOOSEVELT  AND  THE  BIBLE 

IN  1903  I  said  to  President  Roosevelt:  "I  should 
like  to  have  from  you,  for  a  book  I  am  writing, 
something  that  expresses  your  religious  faith, 
which  is  so  strong  and  which  I  know  from  your  say 
ings,  actions  and  sentiments  is  the  basis  of  your  char 
acter  and  contains  your  ideas  of  individual  and  pub 
lic  morality."  He  said  to  me:  "I  will  gladly  do  so. 
I  think  the  address  I  delivered  before  the  Long  Island 
Bible  Society  in  the  Presbyterian  church  at  Oyster 
Bay  in  1901  is  just  the  thing  you  want. ' '  I  found  it 
was  exactly  the  thing  I  wanted,  and  this  is  what  he 
said  in  the  address  about  the  Bible: 

"  There  are  certain  truths  which  are  so  very  true 
that  we  call  them  truisms;  and  yet  I  think  we  often 
half  forget  them  in  practice.  Every  thinking  man, 
when  he  thinks,  realizes  what  a  very  large  number  of 
people  tend  to  forget,  that  the  teachings  of  the  Bible 
are  so  interwoven  and  entwined  with  our  whole  civic 
and  social  life  that  it  would  be  literally — I  do  not 
mean  figuratively,  I  mean  literally — impossible  for  us 
to  figure  to  ourselves  what  that  life  would  be  if  these 
teachings  were  removed.  We  would  lose  almost  all 
the  standards  by  which  we  now  judge  both  public 

307 


308  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

and  private  morals ;  all  the  standards  toward  which  we, 
with  more  or  less  resolution,  strive  to  raise  ourselves. 
Almost  every  man  who  has  by  his  life-work  added  to 
the  sum  of  human  achievement  of  which  the  race  is 
proud,  of  which  our  people  are  proud,  almost  every 
such  man  has  based  his  life-work  largely  upon  the 
teachings  of  the  Bible.  Sometimes  it  was  done  uncon 
sciously,  more  often  consciously,  and  among  the  very 
greatest  men  a  disproportionately  large  number  have 
been  diligent  and  close  students  of  the  Bible  at  first 
hand.  Lincoln,  sad,  patient,  kindly  Lincoln,  who  after 
bearing  upon  his  weary  shoulders  for  four  years  a 
greater  burden  than  that  borne  by  any  other  man  of 
the  nineteenth  century,  laid  down  his  life  for  the 
people  whom  living  he  had  served  as  well,  built  up 
his  entire  reading  upon  his  early  study  of  the  Bible. 
He  had  mastered  it  absolutely;  mastered  it  as  later 
he  mastered  only  one  or  two  other  books,  notably 
Shakespeare;  mastered  it  so  that  he  became  almost 
'a  man  of  one  book/  who  knew  that  book,  and  who 
instinctively  put  into  practice  what  he  had  been 
taught  therein;  and  he  left  his  life  as  part  of  the 
crowning  work  of  the  century  that  has  just  closed. 

''In  this  country  we  rightly  pride  ourselves  upon 
our  systems  of  widespread  popular  education.  We 
most  emphatically  do  right  to  pride  ourselves  upon 
it.  It  is  not  merely  of  inestimable  advantage  to  us; 
it  lies  at  the  root  of  our  power  of  self-government. 
But  it  is  not  sufficient  in  itself.  We  must  cultivate 
the  mind;  but  it  is  not  enough  only  to  cultivate  the 
mind.  With  education  of  mind  must  go  the  spiritual 
teaching  which  will  make  us  turn  the  trained  intel 
lect  to  good  account.  A  man  whose  intellect  has  been 
educated,  while  at  the  same  time  his  moral  education 
has  been  neglected,  is  only  the  more  dangerous  to  the 


AND   THE   BIBLE  309 

community  because  of  the  exceptional  additional 
power  which  he  has  acquired.  Surely  what  I  am  say 
ing  needs  no  proof ;  surely  the  mere  statement  of  it  is 
enough,  that  education  must  be  education  of  the  heart 
and  conscience  no  less  than  of  the  mind. 

'  *  It  is  an  admirable  thing,  a  most  ^necessary  thing, 
to  have  a  sound  body.  It  is  an  even  better  thing  to 
have  a  sound  mind.  But  infinitely  better  than  either 
is  to  have  that  for  the  lack  of  which  neither  a  sound 
mind  nor  a  sound  body  can  atone — character.  Char 
acter  is  in  the  long-run  the  decisive  factor  in  the  life 
of  individuals  and  of  nations  alike. 

"  Sometimes  in  rightly  putting  the  stress  that  we 
do  upon  intelligence,  we  forget  the  fact  that  there  is 
something  that  counts  more.  It  is  a  good  thing  to  be 
clever,  to  be  able  and  smart ;  but  it  is  a  better  thing 
to  have  the  qualities  that  find  their  expression  in  the 
Decalogue  and  the. Golden  Rule.  It  is  a  good  and 
necessary  thing  to  be  intelligent ;  it  is  a  better  thing 
to  be  straight  and  decent  and  fearless.  It  was  a  Yale 
professor,  Mr.  Lounsberry,  who  remarked  that  his  ex 
perience  in  the  class-room  had  taught  him  'the  in 
finite  capacity  of  the  human  mind  to  withstand  the 
introduction  of  knowledge/  Some  of  you  preachers 
must  often  feel  the  same  way  about  the  ability  of 
mankind  to  withstand  the  introduction  of  elementary 
decency  and  morality. 

"A  man  must  be  honest  in  the  first  place ;  but  that 
by  itself  is  not  enough.  No  matter  how  good  a  man 
is,  if  he  is  timid  he  cannot  accomplish  much  in  the 
world.  There  is  only  a  very  circumscribed  sphere  of 
usefulness  for  the  timid  good  man. 

"So,  besides  being  honest,  a  man  has  got  to  have 
courage,  too.  And  these  two  together  are  not  enough. 
No  matter  how  brave  and  honest  he  is,  if  he  is  a 


310  THEODORE    ROOSEVELT 

natural  born  fool,  you  can  do  little  with  him.  Re 
member  the  order  in  which  I  name  them:  Honesty, 
first;  then  courage;  then  brains.  And  all  are  indis 
pensable;  we  have  no  room  in  a  healthy  community 
for  either  the  knave,  the  fool,  the  weakling,  or  the 
coward. 

"You  may  look  through  the  Bible  from  cover  to 
cover  and  nowhere  will  you  find  a  line  that  can  be 
construed  into  an  apology  for  the  man  of  brains  who 
sins  against  the  light.  On  the  contrary,  in  the  Bible, 
taking  that  as  a  guide,  you  will  find  that  because 
much  has  been  given  to  you  much  will  be  expected 
from  you ;  and  a  heavier  condemnation  is  to  be  visited 
upon  the  able  man  who  goes  wrong,  than  upon  his 
weaker  brother  who  cannot  do  the  harm  that  the  other 
does,  because  it  is  not  in  him  to  do  it. 

"So  I  plead,  not  merely  for  training  of  the  mind, 
but  for  the  moral  and  spiritual  training  of  the  home 
and  the  church;  the  moral  and  spiritual  training 
that  have  always  been  found  in,  and  that  have  ever 
accompanied  the  study  of  this  book — this  book  which 
in  almost  every  civilized  tongue  can  be  described  as 
'The  Book/  with  the  certainty  of  all  understand 
ing  you  when  you  so  describe  it. 

' '  The  teaching  of  the  Bible  to  children  is,  of  course, 
a  matter  of  especial  interest  to  those  of  us  who  have 
families — and,  incidentally,  I  wish  to  express  my  pro 
found  belief  in  large  families.  Older  folks  often  fail 
to  realize  how  readily  a  child  will  grasp  a  little  askew 
something  they  do  not  take  the  trouble  to  explain. 
We  cannot  be  too  careful  in  seeing  that  the  Biblical 
learning  is  not  merely  an  affair  of  rote,  so  that  the 
child  may  understand  what  it  is  being  taught.  And, 
by  the  way,  I  earnestly  hope  that  you  will  never  make 
your  children  learn  parts  of  the  Bible  as  punish- 


AND   THE   BIBLE  311 

ment.  Do  you  not  know  families  where  this  is  done? 
For  instance:  'You  have  been  a  bad  child — learn  a 
chapter  of  Isaiah/  And  the  child  learns  it  as  a  dis 
agreeable  task,  and  in  his  mind  that  splendid  and 
lofty  poem  and  prophecy  is  forever  afterward  asso 
ciated  with  an  uncomfortable  feeling  of  disgrace.  I 
hope  you  will  not  make  your  children  learn  the  Bible 
in  that  way,  for  you  can  devise  no  surer  method  of 
making  a  child  revolt  against  all  the  wonderful 
beauty  and  truth  of  Holy  Writ. 

' '  Probably  there  is  not  a  mother  or  a  school  teacher 
here  who  could  not,  out  of  her  own  experience,  give 
instance  after  instance  of  the  queer  twists  that  the 
little  minds  give  to  what  seem  to  us  perfectly  simple 
sentences.  Now,  I  would  make  a  very  strong  plea  for 
each  of  us  to  try  and  see  that  the  child  understands 
what  the  words  mean.  I  do  not  think  that  it  is  ordi 
narily  necessary  to  explain  the  simple  and  beauti 
ful  stories  of  the  Bible;  children  understand  readily 
the  lessons  taught  therein;  but  I  do  think  it  neces 
sary  to  see  that  they  really  have  a  clear  idea  of  what 
each  sentence  means,  what  the  words  mean. 

1 1  Probably  some  of  my  hearers  remember  the  old 
Madison  Square  Presbyterian  Church  in  New  York 
when  it  was  under  the  ministry  of  Dr.  Adams,  and 
those  of  you  who  remember  the  doctor  will,  I  think, 
agree  with  me  that  he  was  one  of  those  very  rare 
men  with  whose  name  one  instinctively  tends  to 
couple  the  adjective  ' saintly.'  I  attended  his  church 
when  I  was  a  little  boy.  The  good  doctor  had  a 
small  grandson,  and  it  was  accidentally  discovered 
that  the  little  fellow  felt  a  great  terror  of  entering 
the  church  when  it  was  vacant.  After  vain  attempts 
to  find  out  exactly  what  his  reasons  were,  it  happened 
late  one  afternoon  that  the  doctor  went  to  the  church 


312  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

with  him  on  some  errand.  When  they  reached  the 
pulpit  he  said:  'Grandpa,  where  is  the  zeal?'  'The 
what?"  asked  Dr.  Adams.  'The  zeal,'  repeated  the 
little  boy.  'Why,  don't  you  know?'  the  little  boy 
asked,  clasping  the  doctor's  hand  and  gazing  anx 
iously  about  while  they  walked  down  the  aisle  to 
gether,  their  steps  echoing  in  the  vacant  building, ' '  the 
zeal  of  thine  house  hath  eaten  me  up."  You  can 
imagine  the  doctor 's  astonishment  when  he  found  that 
this  sentence  had  sunk  deep  into  his  little  grandson's 
mind  as  a  description  of  some  terrific  monster  which 
haunted  the  inside  of  churches. 

' '  The  immense  moral  influence  of  the  Bible,  though 
of  course  infinitely  the  most  important,  is  not  the 
only  power  it  has  for  good.  In  addition  there  is  the 
unceasing  influence  it  exerts  on  the  side  of  good  taste, 
of  good  literature,  of  proper  sense  of  proportion,  of 
simple  and  straightforward  writing  and  thinking. 

"This  is  not  a  small  matter  in  an  age  where  there 
is  a  tendency  to  read  much  that  even  if  not  actually 
harmful  on  moral  grounds,  is  yet  injurious,  because  it 
represents  slipshod,  slovenly  thought  and  work;  not 
the  kind  of  serious  thought,  of  serious  expression, 
which  we  like  to  see  in  anything  that  goes  into  t(ha 
fibre  of  our  character. 

"The  Bible  does  not  teach  us  to  shirk  difficulties, 
but  to  overcome  them.  That  is  a  lesson  that  each  one 
of  us  who  has  children  is  bound  in  honor  to  teach 
these  children  if  he  or  she  expects  to  see  them  be 
come  fitted  to  play  the  part  of  men  and  women  in  our 
world. 

"Again,  I  want  you  to  think  of  your  neighbors, 
of  the  people  you  know.  Don't  you,  each  one  of  you, 
know  some  man  (I  am  sorry  to  say,  perhaps  more 
often,  some  woman)  who  gives  life  an  unhealthy  turn 


AND   THE   BIBLE  313 

for  children  by  trying  to  spare  them  in  the  present 
the  very  things  which  would  train  them  to  do  strong 
work  in  the  future?  Such  conduct  is  not  kindness. 
It  is  shortsightedness  and  selfishness;  it  means  mere 
ly  that  the  man  or  woman  shrinks  from  the  little  in 
conveniences,  to  himself  or  herself,  of  making  the 
child  fit  itself  to  be  a  good  and  strong  man  or  woman 
hereafter.  There  should  be  the  deepest  and  truest 
love  for  their  children  in  the  hearts  of  all  fathers  and 
mothers.  Without  such  love  there  is  nothing  but 
black  despair  for  the  family ;  but  the  love  must  respect 
both  itself  and  the  on  beloved.  It  is  not  true  to  in 
vite  future  disaster  by  weak  indulgence  for  the 
moment. 

"What  is  true  affection  for  a  boy?  To  bring  him 
up  so  that  nothing  rough  ever  touches  him,  and  at 
twenty-one  turn  him  out  into  the  world  with  a  moral 
nature  that  turns  black  and  blue  in  great  bruises  at 
the  least  shock  from  any  one  of  the  forces  of  evil 
with  which  he  is  bound  to  come  in  contact?  Is  that 
kindness?  Indeed,  it  is  not.  Bring  up  your  boys 
with  both  love  and  wisdom;  and  turn  them  out  as 
men,  strong-limbed,  clear-eyed,  stout-hearted,  clean- 
minded,  able  to  hold  their  own  in  this  great  world 
.of  work  and  strife  and  ceaseless  effort. 

"If  we  read  the  Bible  aright,  we  read  a  book  which 
teaches  us  to  go  forth  and  do  the  work  of  the  Lord; 
to  do  the  work  of  the  Lord  in  the  world  as  we  find 
it;  to  try  to  make  things  better  in  this  world,  even 
if  only  a  little  better  because  we  have  lived  in  it. 
That  kind  of  work  can  be  done  only  by  the  man  who 
is  neither  a  weakling  nor  a  coward ;  by  the  man  who 
in  the  fullest  sense  of  the  word  is  a  true  Christian, 
like  Great-Heart,  Bunyan's  hero.  We  plead  for  a 
closer  and  wider  and  deeper  study  of  the  Bible,  so 


314  THEODORE    ROOSEVELT 

that  our  people  may  be  in  fact  as  well  as  in  theory 
*  doers  of  the  word  and  not  hearers-  only. '  ; 

What  a  splendid  specimen  of  Christian  manhood 
President  Roosevelt  has  proven  himself  to  be!  It 
speaks  well  for  the  republic,  that  our  rulers  are  so 
pronounced  in  their  faith  in  the  Bible  and  profession 
of  the  Christian  religion. 

It  is  not  surprising  that  Mr.  Roosevelt 's  favorite 
hymn  should  have  been  this  one: 

"How  firm  a  foundation  ye  saints  of  the  Lord 
Is  laid  for  your  faith  in  His  excellent  word! 
What  more  can  He  say  than  to  you  He  hath  said, 
You  who  unto  Jesus  for  refuge  have  fled? 

"Fear  not,  I  am  with  thee,  oh,  be  not  dismayed, 
For  I  am  thy  God  and  will  still  give  thee  aid. 
I'll  strengthen  thee,  Help  thee,  and  cause  thee  to  stand 
Upheld  by  My  righteous  omnipotent  hand. 

"When  through  the  deep  waters  I  call  thee  to  go, 
The  rivers  of  woe  shall  not  thee  overflow, 
For  I  will  be  with  thee,  thy  troubles  to  bless, 
And  sanctify  to  thee  thy  deepest  distress. 

"When  through  fiery  trials  thy  pathway  shall  lie, 
My  grace,  all  sufficient,  shall  be  thy  supply ; 
The  flame  shall  not  hurt  thee,  I  only  design 
Thy  dross  to  consume,  and  thy  gold  to  refine. 

"The  soul  that  to  Jesus  has  fled  for  repose 
I  will  not,  I  will  not,  desert  to  his  foes, 
That  soul,  though  all  hell  shall  endeavor  to  shake, 
I'll  never,  no  never,  no  never  forsake." 

This  immortal  hymn  is  anonymous.  It  was  found 
in  a  collection  of  hymns  published  in  1787  and  signed 
"K."  Some  critics  said  it  was  Kennedy,  others  that 
it  was  Kirkham,  and  others  that  it  was  Keith,  a  Lon 
don  publisher,  but  no  one  knows  who  its  author  was. 


AND  THE   BIBLE  315 

It  would  give  him  lasting  fame  if  he  could  be  found. 
As  McKinley's  affection  for  the  hymn,  "Nearer  My 
God  to  Thee,"  gave  to  it  a  new  melody,  so  Roosevelt's 
partiality  for  "How  Firm  a  Foundation "  has  sweet 
ened  and  sanctified  it  anew. 


FAVOES  WAR  AND  CONSTITUTIONAL 
PROHIBITION 


CHAPTER.XXIII, 

FAVORS  WAR  AND  CONSTITUTIONAL 
PROHIBITION 

IN  the  early  struggles  of  the  temperance  cause  one 
of  the  heaviest  blows  the  liquor  people  received 
was  the  abolition  of  intoxicants  from  the  army 
canteen.  For  years  and  years  thousands,  even  hun 
dreds  of  thousands  of  dollars,  were  spent  in  news 
paper  advertising  and  in  specific  literature  claiming 
that  removing  the  drink  feature  of  the  canteen  from 
the  army  had  injured  the  soldiers;  that  they  went 
away  from  the  camp  to  the  vile  drinking-places  near 
to  it  and  poisoned  themselves  with  bad  liquor  and 
polluted  themselves  with  evil  habits.  They  insisted 
most  that  its  removal  had  greatly  increased  the  social 
evil.  The  advertising  department  of  the  brewers  was 
so  persistent,  that  it  not  only  wrote  its  own  arguments 
for  insertion  in  the  daily  and  weekly  newspapers,  but 
it  also  prepared  articles  which  appeared  as  editorials 
in  many  of  the  cosmopolitan  papers.  The  same  edi 
torial,  word  for  word,  often  appeared  in  eastern,  west 
ern,  northern  and  southern  daily  papers  bearing  about 
the  same  date.  During  President  Roosevelt's  admin 
istration  there  was  a  tremendous  attempt  to  restore 
drink  to  the  canteen  in  the  army.  A  leading  New 
York  City  Republican  paper,  which  had  usually  been 
on  the  right  side  of  moral  questions,  one  day  printed 

319 


320  THEODORE   KOOSEVELT 

an  editorial  giving  in  detail  the  damage  that  the  re 
moval  of  the  canteen  had  brought  and  asking  for  its 
return  to  the  army.  It  said,  emphatically,  that  two 
of  the  leading  members  of  President  Roosevelt's  Cab 
inet  were  not  only  in  favor  of  it,  but  that  they  in 
tended  to  use  their  influence  for  its  restoration.  Feel 
ing  that  it  was  then  time  to  enter  a  protest  against 
such  a  movement  I  went  to  the  chief  to  do  so. 

Knowing  Colonel  Roosevelt's  life-long  hostility  to 
the  saloon,  knowing  that  his  whole  life  was  at  right 
angles  to  what  it  represented  and  with  faith  in  his 
wisdom  on  such  a  subject,  I  went  down  to  Washing 
ton,  told  the  President  my  alarm  and  asked  him  if  he 
would  not  set  his  foot  down  on  the  movement.  He 
said  to  me,  "Do  not  be  alarmed;  give  yourself  no 
trouble  at  all  on  the  subject ;  the  removal  of  the  drink 
from  the  army  was  a  most  fortunate  thing  for  the 
men  themselves  and  the  nation  they  represent,  and  I 
promise  you  that  so  long  as  I  am  President,  or  so  long 
as  I  shall  have  any  influence  whatever  in  the  Repub 
lican  party  or  in  American  politics,  intoxicants  shall 
never  come  back  into  the  canteen.  You  can  take  the 
first  train  back  home  and  feel  certain  that  the  nation 
will  not  take  a  back  step  on  such  an  economic  or  moral 
question. ' '  Bidding  him  good-bye,  I  suggested  that  it 
would  be  an  excellent  plan  for  the  two  able  members 
of  his  Cabinet,  who  like  some  other  good  men  were 
mistaken  on  the  subject,  to  lessen  their  supposed  zeal 
in  advocating  the  claim  of  the  liquor  dealers,  and  thus 
save  his  administration  from  the  just  criticism  of  the 
church  people. 

During  the  last  campaign  for  the  repeal  of  prohibi 
tion  in  Maine,  the  liquor  people  started  a  rumor  that 
Theodore  Roosevelt  was  about  to  publish  an  editorial 
in  the  Outlook  on  the  failure  of  prohibition  in  Maine. 


CONSTITUTIONAL    PROHIBITION       321 

The  rumor  came  to  the  ears  of  Rev.  Dr.  P.  A.  Baker, 
national  superintendent  of  the  Anti-Saloon  League, 
who  was  at  that  time  engaged  in  the  Maine  campaign. 
He  came  to  New  York  post  haste  and  sought  an  in 
terview  with  Mr.  Roosevelt.  He  secured  an  appoint 
ment  for  the  next  morning  at  the  Outlook  office  at 
eleven  o'clock.  Dr.  Baker,  Rev.  J.  A.  Patterson  and 
I  met  Colonel  Roosevelt.  I  told  him  that  I  knew  that 
rumor  was  false,  but  that  Dr.  Baker  was  very  anxious 
to  have  authority  for  an  official  denial  of  the  same 
as  he  feared  such  a  rumor,  if  not  instantly  and  au 
thoritatively  denied,  might  lose  the  State  to  prohibi 
tion.  He  snapped  out  instantly,  "Give  yourself  no 
concern,  gentlemen,  I  will  not  touch  it!  I  will  not 
touch  it !  Dr.  Baker  and  Dr.  Iglehart  are  Methodists, 
and  Dr.  Patterson  is  a  Presbyterian.  You  good  Meth 
odists,  and  you  good  Presbyterian,  and  the  good 
people  of  other  denominations  are  right  in  such  an 
overwhelming  majority  of  cases  that  I  think  it  per 
fectly  safe  to  stay  with  them  as  I  always  have  done. 
I  never  trained  with  that  crowd  in  my  life  (referring 
to  the  liquor  men),  and  I  never  will." 

A  telegram  came  from  my  personal  friend,  Mr.  J. 
Frank  Burke,  superintendent  of  the  Oregon  State 
Anti-Saloon  League,  on  March  15,  1912,  stating  that 
on  the  platform  and  in  the  press  it  was  charged  that 
Colonel  Roosevelt  was  on  his  way,  rapidly,  to  a  drunk 
ard 's  grave  and  a  drunkard 's  hell  and  asked  me  as 
the  Colonel's  friend  to  wire  a  denial  of  the  slanderous 
statements  to  be  used  at  a  political  meeting  to  be  held 
in.Portland  that  same  night.  This  telegram  went  back 
in  reply: 

"Statement  diabolical  falsehood.  Roosevelt  never 
claimed  total  abstainer.  Drinks  almost  nothing.  No 
alcohol  in  eye  or  muscle.  Not  a  spot  on  him,  body, 


322  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

mind  or  soul.  The  bloom  of  best  American  civiliza 
tion.  Idol  of  people.  Christly  McKinley  suffered 
same  villainous  slander  from  same  source.  Hell  is  not 
far  from  lying  scandalmonger." 

Though  corresponding  with  the  Colonel  regularly, 
I  did  not  care  to  irritate  him  with  this  slander,  but 
in  a  letter  in  May,  1912,  I  gave  him  the  text  of  the 
two  telegrams  received.  His  answer  was  the  follow 
ing: 

EN  ROUTE,  PULLMAN  PEIVATE  CAB  OCEANIC, 

MAY  14,  1912. 

MY  DEAE  FRIEND:  You  are  a  trump!  I  am  very  glad  you 
sent  precisely  that  telegram.  You  are  absolutely  correct.  I 
have  never  claimed  to  be  a  total  abstainer,  but  I  drink  as 
little  as  most  total  abstainers,  for  I  really  doubt  whether  on 
an  average,  year  in  and  year  out,  I  drink  more  than  is  given 
for  medicinal  purposes  to  many  people.  I  never  touch 
whiskey,  and  I  have  never  drunk  a  cocktail  or  a  highball 
in  my  life.  I  doubt  whether  I  have  drunk  a  dozen  tea- 
spoonfuls  of  brandy  since  I  came  back  from  Africa,  and 
as  far  as  I  now  recollect,  in  each  case  it  was  for  medicinal 
purposes.  In  Africa  during  the  eleven  months  I  drank 
exactly  seven  ounces  of  brandy;  this  was  under  our  doc 
tor's  direction  in  my  first  fever  attack,  and  once  when  I 
was  completely  exhausted.  My  experience  on  these  two 
occasions  convinced  me  that  tea  was  better  than  brandy, 
and  during  the  last  six  months  in  Africa  I  took  no  brandy, 
even  when  sick,  taking  tea  instead.  I  drink  just  about  as 
much  as  Dr.  Lyman  Abbott — and  I  say  this  with  his  per 
mission. 

Faithfully  yours, 

THEODORE  ROOSEVELT. 

Colonel  Roosevelt  nursed  his  wrath  until  he  could 
nail  the  lie,  which  he  did  in  his  successful  suit  against 
an  editor,  in  which  he  got  the  complete  vindication 
which  he  demanded  and  deserved. 

Never  since  that  day  has  any  person  of  responsibil 
ity  dared  repeat  the  foul  slander,  and  Theodore  Roose- 


CONSTITUTIONAL   PROHIBITION       323 

velt  stands  as  a  superb  personality  against  the  iniquity 
of  the  saloon  and  its  intimate  partnership  with  cor 
rupt  politics. 

On  January  4,  1917,  at  my  request,  Colonel  Roose 
velt  gave  me  in  condensed  form  his  views  against  the 
saloon  as  he  had  so  often  done  in  private  conversation. 
He  called  his  stenographer  and  began : 

MY  DEAR  DOCTOR  IGLEHABT:  It  has  been  my  very  good 
fortune  to  be  associated  with  you  ever  since  the  days  when 
I  was  president  of  the  Police  Commission  of  New  York, 
when  I  worked  hand  in  hand  with  you,  and  with  the  Min 
isters'  Association  that  you  represented  on  behalf  of  tem 
perance,  and  of  doing  away  with  the  evil  of  the  saloon 
power  in  New  York  City.  At  that  time,  our  fight  was  for 
a  proper  observance  of  the  Sunday  law.  There  could  have 
been  no  more  practical  illustration  of  the  hideous  evil, 
wrought  by  the  liquor  traffic,  than  was  afforded  by  the  re 
sults  of  its  stoppage  for  the  few  Sundays  during  which 
we  were  able  to  keep  the  saloons  absolutely  closed.  Dur 
ing  this  period,  the  usual  mass  of  individuals  up  in  the 
courts  on  Monday  morning,  on  charges  of  being  drunk  and 
disorderly  and  committing  assaults,  diminished  by  two- 
thirds  or  over.  The  hospitals,  such  as  Bellevue,  showed  a 
similar  diminution  of  persons  brought  to  them  because  of 
alcoholism  and  crimes  due  to  drunkenness.  On  the  other 
hand,  the  healthy  Sunday  resorts  in  the  neighborhood  of 
New  York  showed  a  great  increase  in  business.  Men  who 
would  otherwise  have  stayed  in  New  York  drinking,  while 
their  wives  and  children  suffered  in  the  heated  tenement 
houses,  took  these  same  wives  and  children  for  a  Sunday 
holiday  in  the  country.  Unfortunately,  by  the  end  of  that 
time,  the  decisions  of  the  courts  and  juries  had  so  ham 
pered  our  action  that,  to  a  very  large  extent,  the  old  sys 
tem  was  reinstated.  While  this  was  partly  because  pub 
lic  opinion  had  not  been  educated  to  sustain  us,  it  was 
partly  because  of  the  alliance  between  the  saloon  power 
and  the  politicians.  Any  man  who  fails  to  take  into  ac 
count  both  of  these  facts  is  blinding  himself  to  two  of  the 
prime  factors  in  the  misgovernment  of  our  citizens  and  in 
the  misery  of  our  city  populations.  If  you  care  to  know 


324  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

my  views  more  fully,  as  written  at  the  time,  I  refer  you 
to  my  chapter  on  the  subject  printed  in  a  book  called. 
"American  Ideals."  The  only  change  I  have  since  to  record 
is  a  constantly  growing  appreciation  of  the  wide-reaching 
evil  of  the  liquor  traffic,  and  of  the  need  of  extending,  by 
every  method  possible  through  our  country,  a  full  under 
standing  of  what  this  evil  is. 

Sincerely  yours, 

THEODOBE  ROOSEVELT. 

In  "American  Ideals,"  to  which  Colonel  Roosevelt 
referred  me,  I  find  these  references  to  criminals  who 
were  office  holders  and  political  leaders.  There  was 
one  case  of  an  assemblyman  who  served  several  terms 
in  the  Legislature,  while  his  private  business  was  to 
carry  on  corrupt  negotiations  between  the  excise  com 
missioners  and  owners  of  low  haunts  who  wished 
licenses.  The  president  of  a  powerful  semi-political 
association  was  by  profession  a  burglar,  while  the  man 
who  received  the  goods  he  stole  was  an  alderman.  An 
other  alderman  was  elected  while  his  hair  was  still 
short  from  a  term  in  State  Prison.  A  school  trustee 
had  been  convicted  of  embezzlement  and  was  the  as 
sociate  of  criminals.  A  prominent  official  in  the  Po 
lice  Department  was  interested  in.  disreputable  houses 
and  gambling  saloons,  and  was  backed  politically  by 
their  proprietors. 

In  a  section  under  the  heading,  "The  Liquor  Seller 
in  Politics, "  there  is  this  description  of  the  saloon 
as  a  headquarters  for  both  political  parties:  "Pre 
paratory  to  the  general  election  of  1884,  there  were 
held  in  the  various  districts  of  New  York  ten  hundred 
and  seven  primaries  and  political  conventions  of  all 
parties,  and  of  these  no  less  than  six  hundred  and 
thirty-three  took  place  in  liquor  saloons — a  showing 
that  leaves  small  ground  for  wonder  at  the  low  aver 
age  grade  of  the  nominees." 


CONSTITUTIONAL   PROHIBITION       325 

In  urging  National  Prohibition  as  a  war  measure, 
Colonel  Roosevelt  said: 

"When  we  are  threatened  with  a  shortage  of  food 
stuffs,  when  it  is  our  duty  to  supply  food  to  our  allies 
to  our  utmost  ability,  we  should  see  that  needed  food 
necessities  are  not  diverted  from  their  proper  use. 
Most  of  the  belligerent  nations  of  Europe  have  taken 
up  this  problem  and  settled  it.  Let  us  begin  at  once 
to  see  to  it  that  our  grain  is  kept  for  food  and  not 
put  into  alcoholic  beverages. 

In  a  letter  received  from  the  Colonel  on  December 
19,  1917,  he  said: 

MY  DEAR  MR.  IGLEHABT:  I  thank  you  for  your  book  and 
appreciate  your  sending  it  to  me,  and  I  wish  to  congratulate 
you  on  what  has  happened  in  Congress  and  the  success  that 
is  crowning  your  long  fight  against  alcoholism. 

The  American  saloon  has  been  one  of  the  most  mischiev 
ous  dements  in  American  social,  political  and  industrial 
life.  No  man  has  warred  more  valiantly  against  it  than 
you  have,  and  I  am  glad  that  it  has  been  my  privilege  to 
stand  with  you  in  the  contest. 

It  will  be  seen  from  the  date  of  this  letter  that  it 
was  written  the  day  after  Congress  finally  accepted 
the  National  Constitutional  Prohibition  Resolution 
and  the  decision  of  Congress  which  he  congratulates 
refers  to  that  action  which  was  the  death  knell  of  the 
liquor  traffic  in  America. 

To  a  number  of  other  persons  he  expressed  the  same 
views  with  leference  to  National  Constitutional  Pro 
hibition,  among  them  Wayne  B.  Wheeler,  Rev.  A.  B. 
Wood,  Senator  Frederick  Davenport,  and  others. 

HE   FAVORED   WOMAN   SUFFRAGE 
Colonel  Roosevelt  was  a  champion  of  Woman  Suf 
frage;  was  one  of  the  first  great  political  leaders  to 
espouse  that  cause,  and  it  is  likely  he  made  more 


326  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

friends  for  it  than  any  other  one  man.  I  spoke  at 
the  Methodist  church  at  Oyster  Bay,  New  York,  one 
Sunday  morning,  and  after  the  service  a  young  wo 
man  who  said  she  was  from  Kentucky,  snapped  her 
black  eyes  and  said,  "What  you  said  about  woman's 
influence  in  driving  out  the  saloon  is  true.  But  when 
you  pictured  woman  on  her  knees  praying  God  to 
wipe  out  this  curse,  why  did  -you  not  suggest  that 
men  help  God  to  answer  that  prayer  by  giving  her 
the  right  to  vote?"  Colonel  Roosevelt,  who  attended 
service  at  that  church  that  morning,  standing  near, 
heard  her  question  and  said,  "She  is  correct  in  her 
belief  that  women  would  vote  against  the  saloon.  I 
have  just  returned  from  a  tour  of  Michigan  in  behalf 
of  woman  suffrage,  and  in  the  windows  of  the  saloons 
I  saw  large  placards,  '  Vote  against  Woman  Suffrage, ' 
and  on  the  streets  I  saw  advertisements  of  the  saloon 
in  living  forms  muttering  out  in  their  intoxication, 
'Vote  against  the  Women/  Of  one  thing  I  am  con 
vinced,  and  that  is  that  the  liquor  people  fear  wo 
man's  vote  as  a  deadly  enemy." 

One  of  the  last  things  Mr.  Roosevelt  did  before  he 
died  was  to  write  a  letter  asking  Congress  to  pass 
the  Constitutional  Female  Suffrage  Resolution.  Thou 
sands,  if  not  millions,  of  people,  who  had  been  against 
woman  suffrage  or  had  been  lukewarm  on  the  subject, 
were  stirred  into  enthusiastic  approval  because  Col 
onel  Roosevelt  was  so  certain  of  the  wisdom  and  prac 
ticability  of  this  reform,  which  came  in  the  adoption 
of  the  amendment  by  Congress  shortly  after  his  death, 
to  the  lasting  benefit  of  the  nation. 


ROOSEVELT  THE  GREAT  HEART 


(C)  Int.  Film  Service  Co.  (c)  W.  N.  U.  Photo  Service 

Top         left    hand  side  COL.  THEODORE  ROOSEVELT 

right    "        "  CAFT.  KERMIT  ROOSEVELT 

Bottom  left       "        "  CAPT.  ARCHIE  ROOSEVELT 

right    "        "  LIEUT.  QUENTIN  ROOSEVELT 


CHAPTER  XXIV 
ROOSEVELT  THE  GREAT  HEART 

WE  found  the  parallel  for  Theodore  Roosevelt 
in  the  Hercules  of  classical  antiquity.  We 
see  his  counterpart  in  the  Great  Heart  of 
Bunyan's  Pilgrim's  Progress.  Senator  Henry  Cabot 
Lodge  in  his  masterful  memorial  oration  uses  as  his 
peroration  a  quotation  from  Bunyan's  allegory.  He 
likens  Roosevelt  to  Valiant — for-the-Truth,  whom  the 
author  represents  as  holding  the  sword,  with  which 
he  fights  for  the  right,  so  firmly  that  it  became  ce 
mented  to  his  fingers  and  seemed  to  grow  out  of  his 
hand  as  a  part  of  it.  But  the  real  hero  of  the  second 
part  of  Pilgrim's  Progress  was  Great  Heart.  His 
tender  regard  for  women  and  children  was  such  that 
he  devoted  his  time  and  energy  in  helping  them  up 
the  pathway  of  life,  and  in  clearing  away  its  difficul 
ties  and  dangers.  He  was  a  Hercules  who  braved 
lions  in  the  path,  drove  them  out  of  the  way  of  the 
women  and  children  and  fought  and  slew  the  robbers 
and  giants  that  undertook  to  harm  them.  It  was 
Great  Heart  who  led  Christiana  and  her  four  sons 
along  the  dangerous  pilgrimage  of  life  up  to  the  de 
lectable  mountains  and  the  land  of  Beulah.  He  pre 
sents  an  exact  picture  of  the  tender  regard  Theodore 
Roosevelt  always  had  for  the  women  and  children  of 

329 


330  THEODOKE   ROOSEVELT 

America,  especially  for  the  helpless  ones.  From  the 
very  beginning  of  his  public  life  till  the  day  of  his 
death  he  did  everything  in  his  power  to  improve  the 
condition  of  women  and  children,  and  to  promote 
their  progress,  usefulness  and  happiness.  The  laws  on 
the  statute  books  safe-guarding  the  interest  of  the 
women  and  children,  especially  those  of  the  poor,  were 
many  of  them  put  there  by  Mr.  Roosevelt's  influence. 
The  other  day  I  went  over  on  the  East  Side  to 
see  a  very  old  woman,  Mrs.  Mary  Ledwith,  who  said 
she  was  born  in  1830,  and  hence  was  89  years  of  age. 
She  said  that  she  went  to  live  in  the  home  of  Mr. 
Charles  Carow,  the  father  of  Mrs.  Theodore  Roose 
velt,  before  Lincoln's  election.  She  was  in  the  family 
when  Mrs.  Roosevelt  was  born ;  she  put  her  first  dress 
upon  her  and  remained  in  the  family  until  the  time, 
when  she  went,  as  a  nurse,  into  the  home  of  Colonel 
Roosevelt,  when  Miss  Ethel  Carow  was  married  to 
him.  She  remained  in  the  family  until  a  few  years 
ago.  She  said  there  never  was  a  nicer  little  girl  than 
Ethel  Carow,  and  no  finer  woman  than  Mrs.  Ethel 
Roosevelt.  She  is  so  lovely  to  me  now,  comes  to  see 
me  and  on  Christmas  always  brings  me  some  nice 
present,  generally  a  garment  that  she  has  made  with 
her  own  fingers.  This  nice  one  she  gave  me  this  last 
Christmas.  I  had  the  chance  to  see  Colonel  Roosevelt 
at  close  range  and  there  was  never  a  finer  man.  He 
also  has  been  so  tender  and  good  to  me,  visiting  me, 
and  always  came  to  see  me  when  I  was  sick.  All  those 
pictures  on  the  wall  of  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Roosevelt  and 
the  children  were  given  to  me  by  him.  The  last  time 
he  was  here  he  spent  some  considerable  time  looking 
over  them  and  said,  "This  one  was  taken  at  Albany, 
that  one  in  New  York,  this  other  one  in  Washington 
and  this  at  Oyster  Bay."  Those  pictures  are  mighty 


ROOSEVELT  THE  GREAT  HEART   331 

good  company  to  me  and  they  seemed  to  be  to  him 
that  day.  Quite  an  amusing  incident  occurred  one  day. 
I  had  lived  on  the  second  floor  of  this  building  and 
had  moved  to  the  third,  where  I  am  now.  And  Colo 
nel  Roosevelt,  running  up  the  first  stairway,  rushed 
into  the  apartment  I  formerly  occupied  and  fright 
ened  the  tenant  nearly  out  of  her  wits.  Mrs.  Weis- 
man  resented  the  insolence  and  Colonel  Roosevelt  told 
her  who  he  was,  begged  her  pardon  and  said  he  wat5 
looking  for  Mrs.  Ledwith.  He  then  came  upstairs  just 
as  full  of  life  as  a  boy  and  laughed  heartily  as  he  said, 
"You  got  me  into  a  lot  of  trouble  by  not  notifying 
me  that  you  had  moved  upstairs,  for  I  got  into  an 
other  person's  house  and  did  not  know  but  that  I 
would  be  arrested  as  a  burglar."  Mrs.  Ledwith  said 
she  was  very  sorry  that  her  memory  had  failed  her, 
as  she  had  so  many  delightful  experiences  in  being 
in  the  home  of  so  great  and  good  a  man  as  Theodore 
Roosevelt.  Theodore  Roosevelt's  tender  regard  for 
Mrs.  Ledwith  was  an  illustration  of  that  affection  and 
care  which  he  had  for  the  aged  man  and  woman. 

Almost  the  greatest  characteristic  of  Mr.  Roose 
velt's  life  was  his  love  for  children  and  the  deep  in 
terest  he  took  in  their  welfare.  No  wonder  the  boys 
in  America  idolized  him.  He  knew  them  so  well  and 
was  so  much  of  a  boy  himself.  During  the  Barnes 
trial  in  Syracuse  the  Colonel  kept  up  his  horseback 
exercise.  One  afternoon  a  prominent  Syracusan  looked 
up  from  his  newspaper  on  the  front  porch  and  called 
to  his  wife  upstairs :  ' l  There  goes  Theodore  Roosevelt 
on  horseback. ' '  At  the  moment  the  six-year-old  son  of 
the  house  was  in  the  bathtub.  He  heard  his  father, 
rushed  scampering  and  spattering  downstairs,  out  of 
the  front  door  and  right  down  the  walk  to  the  middle 
of  the  street,  hoping  for  a  glimpse  of  his  great  idol. 


332  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

But  he  was  too  late  for  the  Colonel  had  gotten  out  of 
sight,  and  the  father  had  to  run  out  and  kidnap  his 
nude  child  and  carry  him  back  into  the  house  while 
the  little  fellow  kept  on  saying :  ' '  Where  is  he,  papa ! 
Where  is  he !  Which  way  did  he  go ! "  That  night, 
at  a  reception,  the  father  told  the  Colonel  of  it.  "By 
George — by  George ! ' ' — and  he  chuckled.  ' i  You  bring 
that  boy  to  me — I  want  to  see  him ! ' '  He  was  brought, 
duly  clad,  and  was  mounted  for  half  an  hour  on  the 
Roosevelt  knee,  and  told  stories  about  Injuns  and  lions 
and  giraffes  and  grizzlies  and  my  grandchildren ;  and 
when  taken  home  in  a  trance,  and  measured,  his  father 
said  he  had  grown  an  inch. 

Not  very  long  before  he  died,  one  autumn  day  Colo 
nel  Roosevelt  went  down  to  the  court  in  New  York  and 
sat  for  two  hours  at  the  elbow  of  Justice  Hoyt  and 
acted  as  unofficial  consulting  justice.  In  one  case  he 
leaned  over  and  whispered  to  a  youngster,  "It's  all 
right,  sonny.  You  're  all  right,  but  remember  don 't  do 
it  again  or  he'll  send  you  away."  One  little  urchin 
had  stolen  something  good  to  eat  from  the  pushcart 
and  had  made  restitution  to  the  owner.  Mr.  Roose 
velt  as  he  thumped  the  arm  of  the  chair  said,  "That's 
a  fine  boy,  that  kind  make  first-rate  citizens.  * ' 

Colonel  Roosevelt's  love  for  the  children  was  mani 
fested  in  his  deep  desire  that  the  children  of  the  plain 
people,  and  of  poverty,  might  have  all  the  advantages 
of  a  common  school  education,  and  also  technical  in 
struction  in  the  fine  arts.  This  interest  was  shown,  a 
few  years  ago,  in  a  visit  to  the  Third  Street  Music 
Settlement  in  New  York  City.  He  was  entranced  with 
the  orchestra  of  East  Side  boys  and  girls,  from  many 
lands,  playing  a  movement  from  a  Haydn  symphony, 
and  was  astonished  by  three  little  pupils  with  the 
Widor  "  Serenade "  for  piano,  violin  and  'cello,  fol- 


ROOSEVELT  THE  GREAT  HEART   333 

lowed  by  various  piano  and  violin  solos.  He  made 
the  children  a  beautiful  speech  in  which  he  said: 
"Boys  and  girls,  do  not  envy  your  neighbors  who 
may  have  many  automobiles  in  their  garages  while 
you  have  your  piano,  your  violin,  or  'cello.  Prepare 
yourself  to  earn  the  living  wage,  but  do  not  forget  to 
leave  the  casement  open  to  let  in  'the  light  that  never 
was  on  sea  or  land. '  Let  the  love  for  literature,  paint 
ing,  sculpture,  architecture,  and,  above  all,  music  en 
ter  into  your  lives. ' ' 

One  cold  day  in  February  in  returning  from  lunch 
to  The  Outlook  office  he  found  a  little  immigrant  boy 
nine  years  old  who  had  got  lost  from  his  parents  and 
was  crying  bitterly.  The  Colonel  took  out  his  hand 
kerchief,  wiped  the  child's  eyes  and  spoke  to  him 
kindly,  and  took  him  by  the  hand  and  led  him  to  the 
matron  of  one  of  the  police  stations  with  the  personal 
request  that  she  immediately  find  his  parents  and  take 
him  to  them,  which  she  did. 

In  1903  there  was  an  important  function  in  Port 
land,  Ore.,  of  which  Mr.  Roosevelt  was  the  centre. 
The  city  was  crowded  and  the  pavements  were  lined 
with  people  witnessing  the  procession.  There  was  a 
little  incurable  invalid  girl,  who  was  very  anxious  to 
see  the  President  of  the  United  States  as  he  went  by. 
And  they  put  her  on  a  stretcher  and  carried  her  to  the 
edge  of  the  pavement.  President  Roosevelt,  noticing 
the  pale,  sick  little  creature,  stopped  his  carriage,  ran 
to  the  cot  where  she  lay,  stooped  down  and  kissed  her 
and  then  hurried  back  to  his  carriage  and  the  proces 
sion  went  on.  As  Hercules,  he  was  at  the  head  of  the 
nation ;  as  Great  Heart,  he  bent  down  and  kissed  the 
sick  little  child. 

This  love  for  children  is  illustrated  by  an  incident 
told  me  by  Rev.  Dr.  Bowman.  One  day  Mrs.  Bowman 


334  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

and  her  small  daughter,  Ruth,  were  taking  a  train  for 
Oyster  Bay.  The  child,  lifted  up  the  steps  by  her 
mother,  ran  ahead  of  her  into  the  car.  Knowing 
Colonel  Roosevelt  and  noticing  that  no  one  else  was 
in  the  seat  with  him,  she  sat  down  beside  him.  The 
Colonel  had  a  manuscript  in  his  hand  but  at  once 
turned  aside  and  entered  into  an  earnest  conversation 
with  Ruth.  The  mother  half  scolded  the  child  for 
having  disturbed  the  Colonel  and  took  her  by  the 
hand  to  lead  her  to  another  seat.  The  Colonel  in 
stantly  remonstrated  and  said  he  felt  proud  that  the 
child  had  noticed  him  and  that  he  was  glad  she  sat 
beside  him.  He  arose  politely  and  asked  Mrs.  Bow 
man  to  take  his  seat  by  the  side  of  Ruth,  saying  he 
would  find  another  one.  She  remonstrated,  but  he 
insisted  and  sat  down  by  the  side  of  a  colored  man, 
which  no  one  else  in  the  car  seemed  to  care  to  do. 
Before  going,  however,  he  said,  "Ruth,  I  am  about 
to  start  on  a  long  journey  to  Africa.  I  will  be  away 
a  long  time  and  shall  not  be  able  to  see  you.  Here 
is  a  dollar  which  I  want  you  to  keep  to  remember  me 
by,  and  here  is  another  dollar  I  want  you  to  give 
to  your  brother  for  him  to  remember  me  by." 

Several  years  before  when  little  Ruth  was  a  baby 
learning  to  walk  she  had  pulled  herself  up  by  the 
side  of  a  high-chair  in  which  her  brother  was  seated 
at  the  table  and  pulled  it  over  on  her  and  cut  her 
head  pretty  severely.  Colonel  Roosevelt,  hearing  of 
the  accident,  immediately  sent  his  daughter  Ethel 
down  to  the  parsonage  to  find  out  how  badly  the  child 
had  been  hurt  and  to  say  that  if  there  was  anything 
he  could  do  for  her  he  would  count  it  a  privilege  to 
do  so. 

In  one  of  Colonel  Roosevelt's  greatest  addresses  he 
describes  the  ideal  man  as  a  true  Christian  and  illus- 


ROOSEVELT  THE  GREAT  HEART   335 

trates  that  fact  by  referring  to  Great  Heart,  Bun- 
yan's  hero. 

THE  COVE  SCHOOL 

The  little  Cove  School,  near  to  Sagamore  Hill,  fur 
nishes  a  complete  revelation  of  Roosevelt,  the  Great 
Heart.  On  a  visit  to  the  Cove  School  Miss  Ella  G. 
Stewart,  who  is  the  teacher  there,  gave  me  the  follow 
ing  information.  In  everything  connected  with  the 
school  he  took  as  deep  and  personal  an  interest  as 
though  it  were  his  own  family.  There  was  a  garden 
committee  of  the  rural  neighborhood,  composed  of 
ladies,  which  gave  prizes  for  the  best  kept  garden  at 
the  different  homes  in  the  neighborhood.  The  exhibits 
were  brought  to  the  school  house  in  September,  be 
fore  the  beginning  of  the  school,  and  first,  second  and 
third  prizes,  which  were  furnished  by  the  women,  were 
presented  by  Mr.  Roosevelt. 

He  took  a  deep  interest  in  these  contests  and  on 
Friday  following  the  opening  of  school  he  awarded 
the  prizes.  He  gave  a  book  himself  to  the  one  who 
made  the  best  effort.  For  instance,  he  gave  a  book  to 
a  boy  who  did  not  have  the  best  garden,  but  who  had 
the  best  garden  under  the  circumstances.  His  field 
was  full  of  roots  and  hard  to  cultivate,  and  the  Colo 
nel  explained  to  the  school  that  the  boy  got  the  book 
because  he  had  made  such  a  good  garden  having  had 
to  overcome  such  great  difficulties.  Leonard  Hall  got 
one  of  these  big  books  on  gardening  as  a  prize. 

Each  year  Arbor  Day  was  celebrated,  Mr.  Roosevelt 
paid  for  the  trees  and  each  of  the  scholars  planted 
one.  One  autumn  he  presented  a  large  bird  house 
and  put  it  up  in  a  tree  in  the  school  yard  and  the 
children  put  up  smaller  boxes  in  the  trees  around  the 
house  and  here  the  birds  found  refuge  and  nested  and 


336  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

sung.  There  was  no  mistake  about  Great  Heart's 
feeling  for  the  beautiful  choristers  of  the  woods.  The 
walls  of  the  school  were  fairly  covered  with  the  pic 
tures  of  birds  and  on  the  table  was  a  magazine  about 
birds  and  reasons  for  loving  them,  which  he  sent  to 
the  school  with  his  compliments  every  year.  On  the 
wall  was  a  curious  picture  and  a  beautiful  one  also 
made  of  silk  thread  by  a  sailor  who  was  on  one  of  the 
ships  of  the  fleet  that  went  around  the  world,  and 
which  he  sent  as  a  present  to  Colonel  Roosevelt.  In 
presenting  the  picture  Mr.  Roosevelt  told  them  about 
the  great  United  States  fleet  and  the  reasons  he  had 
for  sending  it  around  the  world. 

Noticing  a  bronze  tablet  on  the  wall  in  memory  of 
Mr.  Fleet,  who  had  been  a  trustee  of  the  school  for 
thirty-one  years,  I  remembered  it  was  the  one  to 
which  Colonel  Roosevelt  declined  to  contribute.  In 
answer  to  a  letter  requesting  his  subscription,  which 
was  expected  of  course  to  be  an  affirmative  one,  he 
declined.  He  knew  Mr.  Fleet  to  have  been  an  excel 
lent  man  and  to  have  rendered  invaluable  services 
and  that  if  the  memorial  should  do  the  children  any 
practical  good,  such  as  a  drinking  fountain  or  a  gym 
nasium  or  fountain  for  birds  on  the  outside  he  would 
contribute  liberally  to  it,  but  for  a  brass  tablet  on  the 
wall  not  a  cent.  He  said  he  would  not  give  a  cent  to 
it  if  the  memorial  was  to  his  grandfather. 

The  crown  and  climax  of  the  Cove  School  year  were 
the  Christmas  exercises.  For  over  thirty  years  Great 
Heart  had  been  the  Santa  Claus  of  the  school,  making 
piles  of  fun  for  the  children  and  just  as  much  for  him 
self.  It  had  been  the  custom  of  Mr.  Roosevelt  for  over 
thirty  years  to  give  a  present  to  every  child  in  the 
school  at  Christmas  time.  He  arranged  it  so  that  each 
child  should  write  a  letter  to  the  teacher  telling  her 


KOOSEVELT  THE  GREAT  HEART   337 

what  present  he  or  she  desired  Santa  Glaus  to  bring. 
The  letters  were  carefully  filed  and  each  boy  and  girl 
received  to  the  dot  the  very  thing  asked  for. 

The  exercises  were  usually  held  on  Friday  afternoon 
closing  the  school  term  and  preceding  the  Christmas 
vacation.  The  children  first  gave  recitations  and 
songs,  and  then  Mr.  Roosevelt  made  a  twenty-five- 
minute  address  to  them  and  their  parents  and  friends 
who  had  assembled. 

Rev.  H.  S.  Dunning,  pastor  of  the  Presbyterian 
Church  at  Oyster  Bay,  a  warm  friend  of  Mr.  Roose 
velt,  often  went  out  to  the  Cove  School  Christmas 
exercises.  He  told  me  a  number  of  interesting  things 
about  the  exercises,  among  them  a  story  which  the 
Colonel  related  in  one  of  these  short  addresses. 

He  told  about  one  of  the  few  Christmases  he  spent 
away  from  the  Cove  School,  the  one  in  which  he  was 
on  his  hunting  trip  in  Africa.  Mr.  Roosevelt  said  that 
he  chanced  to  be,  on  that  day,  among  the  natives  at  a 
town  where  few,  if  any,  white  people  lived.  A  bull 
elephant  had  been  running  amuck,  terrifying  the  peo 
ple  of  the  vicinity  and  killing  some  of  them.  He  and 
his  party  determined  on  this  Christmas  day  to  go  out 
and,  if  possible,  destroy  the  beast.  In  a  very  vivid 
way  he  related  the  story  of  how  they  came  upon  the 
creature  and  how  finally,  after  considerable  peril  to 
themselves,  they  succeeded  in  despatching  him.  Need 
less  to  say,  the  eyes  of  the  children  bulged  with  excite 
ment  as  the  tale  was  unfolded  to  them. 

After  the  exercises  Mr.  Roosevelt  took  the  presents 
off  the  tree  one  by  one  with  his  own  hands  and  had 
the  child  whose  name  was  called  come  forward  and 
receive  it,  and  he  usually  made  some  delightful  or 
funny  remark  about  the  present  that  was  given.  For 
instance,  he  would  use  some  baseball  phrase  when  he 


338  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

handed  a  boy  a  ball  and  bat,  and  would  have  some 
sweet  little  words  to  say  when  he  gave  a  dolly  to  a 
little  girl.  Little  Margret  Martin,  aged  five  years, 
came  forward  for  her  present  and  Santa  Claus  took 
her  up  with  a  hand  under  each  shoulder  and  holding 
her  up  said,  "I  want  everybody  in  the  house  to  see 
the  sweet  little  girl  who  made  such  a  pretty  speech 
to-day. ' '  When  a  boy  came  up  for  his  present  he  gave 
him  a  flashlight,  saying,  * '  This  reminds  me  of  my  trip 
to  South  America,  when  I  had  to  get  up  in  the  night 
with  my  flashlight  to  see  if  there  were  any  snakes  un 
der  the  bed." 

At  the  close  of  the  exercises  the  Colonel  shook  hands 
with  everybody  in  the  house  (there  were  usually 
about  one  hundred  present).  He  was  the  host,  and 
all  were  the  happy  guests  that  day.  More  than  that, 
he  seemed  like  a  father  and  the  children  and  neigh 
bors  like  his  family.  Beside  the  gifts  to  the  children 
he  gave  each  year  a  book  to  every  teacher  in  the 
school.  Only  one  year  did  he  ever  miss,  that  was  in 
1917.  That  Christmas  he  sent  a  letter  to  the  teachers 
informing  them  that  he  and  Mrs.  Roosevelt  had  de 
termined  not  to  give  any  Christmas  presents  to  adults 
that  year  as  the  war  was  on  and  they  wanted  to  save 
every  cent  they  could  to  aid  in  its  prosecution.  He 
said  they  hacf  determined  to  continue  the  gifts  to  the 
children  as  usual  and  that  they  might  have  the  chil 
dren  send  their  letters  out  to  Santa  Claus  as  usual, 
and  that  they  would  get  the  presents  they  asked  for. 
The  little  Cove  School,  democratic  and  progressive* 
has  been  fortunate  in  its  teachers.  Miss  Sarah  C.  Pro 
vost  was  the  head  teacher  for  twenty-four  years.  Since 
her  death  that  position  has  been  filled  by  Miss  Stewart. 
It  is  a  long  distance  between  the  country  school  at  the 
cove  and  the  University  of  Oxford,  Cambridge,  Paris 


EOOSEVELT  THE  GEEAT  HEART   339 

and  Berlin,  but  Great  Heart,  acting  as  Santa  Claus 
for  the  little  Cove  School,  was  as  great,  if  not  a 
greater  man  than  he  was  as  a  world  character  with 
cap  and  gown  receiving  his  degree  from  Cambridge. 
Love  is  the  strongest  thing  in  the  universe.  Love  is 
the  strongest  force  in  human  character.  It  colored  the 
intellect  and  dominated  the  imperial  will  of  Theodore 
Roosevelt.  He  was  a  Hercules  in  force,  in  rugged  vir 
tue  and  heroic  service  for  others.  But  he  was  also 
Great  Heart,  whose  love  softened  his  spirit  and  con 
trolled  his  life. 

When  Theodore  was  a  boy  his  father  took  him  and 
the  other  children  and  left  them  at  their  own  Sunday 
School  at  Dr.  Adams '  church  and  then  went  on  down 
into  the  sjums  to  take  charge  of  a  mission  school 
amongst  the  poor  and  the  wayward.  The  aunt,  Mrs. 
Bullock,  used  to  say  as  she  saw  him  starting  out  with 
the  children,  "There  goes  Great  Heart."  And  as  the 
world  saw  Theodore  Roosevelt  caring  for  the  children 
of  his  home,  his  community  and  of  the  nation,  es 
pecially  concerning  himself  about  the  children  of  the 
poor  and  wretched,  the  people  said  in  their  hearts, 
"There  goes  Great  Heart."  In  his  boyish,  playful 
spirit,  in  his  intense  affection  for  the  children,  in  his 
plans  for  their  betterment  and  happiness,  he  imitated 
his  Master,  Who  said,  "For  of  such  is  the  kingdom  of 
heaven." 

In  referring  to  Colonel  Roosevelt's  death,  Rudyard 
Kipling  said,  "It  is  as  though  Bunyan's  Mr.  Great 
Heart  had  died  in  the  midst  of  his  pilgrimage."  At 
first  thought  it  would  seem  that  Great.  Heart  had  died 
on  his  pilgrimage,  but  on  second  thought  we  feel  that 
having  conducted  safely  so  many  women,  children  and 
helpless  ones  up  the  rugged,  dangerous  path  of  life  to 
the  river  over  which  they  passed  to  the  Celestial  City, 


340  THEODORE    ROOSEVELT 

he  himself  followed  them  and  joined  the  throng  upon 
the  other  side. 

There  was  a  giant  in  olden  times.  He  was  so  tall 
and  strong  that  he  used  forest  trees  as  walking  sticks 
and  wore  the  clouds  as  his  hair.  The  lightning  was 
the  flash  of  his  eye,  the  thunder  was  the  sound  of  his 
voice,  the  tornado  was  his  breath,  and  the  earthquake 
was  the  shock  of  his  foot.  He  had  a  bad  heart  and 
was  mighty  to  oppress,  injure  and  slay,  and  people 
fled  from  him  in  terror  and  their  loud  wails  of  sorrow 
and  pain  were  heard.  In  our  time  there  lived  a  giant 
mightier  than  the  one  in  classic  story,  but  of  another 
character.  His  heart  was  great.  His  feet  stood  firmly 
on  the  earth  and  his  head  was  crowned  with  stars.  He 
was  a  terror  to  evil-doers  only.  The  lightning  of  in 
dignation,  that  flashed  from  his  eye,  shattered  the  in 
stitutions  of  moral  evil,  and  the  thunder  of  his  voice 
warned  the  people  of  the  dangers  that  threatened  the 
happiness  and  life  of  the  republic.  But  this  giant 
loved  his  fellowmen  and  went  about  doing  good. 

He  was  so  tall  in  heart  and  mind  that  everybody 
in  the  nation  could  see  him,  and  was  charged  with 
such  mysterious  magnetism  that  they  could  not  take 
their  eyes  off  him,  but  watched  to  see  where  he  went, 
what  he  said,  and  what  he  did.  He  went  among  the 
common  people,  who  heard  him  gladly  as  he  taught 
them  how  to  govern  themselves,  and  how  to  govern 
the  nation.  He  went  into  the  homes  of  the  poor  to 
sympathize  with  them,  lift  them  up  and  bring  hope 
and  joy  to  them,  and  demanded  of  the  law-givers 
better  housing  and  education  for  them.  He  went 
among  the  sick,  suffering  and  oppressed  to  bless  them. 
He  entered  the  universities  and  taught  them.  He  vis 
ited  the  State  Legislatures  and  National  Capitol  and 
asked  that  just  and  beneficent  laws  be  enacted. 


KOOSEVELT  THE  GREAT  HEART   341 

Everywhere  hundreds  and  thousands  of  chil 
dren  from  the  homes  and  schools  flocked  about  him, 
and  followed  him  to  cheer  and  love  him.  He  played 
with  them,  and  loved*them  as  a  father  would  his  own, 
and  had  both  arms  full  of  them  wherever  he  went. 
And  the  people  said  that  this  giant  that  can  crush 
the  great  evils  of  the  nation  with  one  arm,  and  press 
the  babies  to  his  heart  with  the  other,  was  a  real  sov 
ereign,  and  demanded  that  he  be  the  ruler  of  the  na 
tion.  And  in  office  and  out  of  office  the  people  looked 
to  him  as  their  leader  till  the  day  of  his  death.  This 
giant  was  so  beautiful  in  his  character  and  so  fragrant 
in  his  influence  that  the  multitudes  flocked  about  him 
and  cheered  him,  and  they  shouted,  "He  is  Roosevelt! 
Roosevelt!"  (A  field  of  roses.)  They  said  he  is  Theo 
dore,  Gift  of  God,  as  the  name  indicates.  And  so  he 
was  a  garden  of  June  roses,  a  gift  of  God,  to  our  earth 
and  generation.  He  arose  as  the  mighty  hero  in  the 
forefront  of  the  fight  of  the  world  battling  for  the 
rights  of  his  fellows,  and  the  honor  of  his  God,  and  as 
soon  as  the  victory  was  won  he  slipped  away  one 
night,  and  made  an  easy  step  from  the  mountain  top 
of  earthly  duty  and  fame  into  heaven. 


HIS  DEATH 


CHAPTER  XXV 
HIS  DEATH 

IT  is  likely  that  if  Theodore  Roosevelt  could  have 
had  his  choice  about  the  manner  of  his  departure 
from  this  world  he  would  have  selected  a  place 
on  the  battlefield  in  France,  counting  it  a  privilege 
to  die  for  his  country,  but  Providence  planned  it 
otherwise.  He  died  in  his  own  home  at  Sagamore 
Hill  early  on  the  morning  of  Monday,  January  6, 
1919.  He  had  had  such  a  pleasant  Sunday  evening 
doing  some  literary  work,  with  Mrs.  Roosevelt  by  his 
side  as  they  sat  before  the  blazing  logs  in  the  fire 
place,  and  he  went  upstairs  to  his  room  to  have  a 
good  night's  rest.  James  Amos,  who  had  been  a 
faithful  colored  servant  in  Washington  and  had  been 
recently  engaged  at  Sagamore  Hill,  sat  at  the  foot 
of  his  bed.  He  said  to  the  man,  "Please  turn  out  the 
light,  James,  I  want  to  go  to  sleep."  James  Burned 
out  the  light  and  he  went  to  sleep  and  never  awoke. 
Mrs.  Roosevelt  bade  him  good-night  just  before  mid 
night  and  slipped  into  his  room  again  at  two  o'clock 
in  the  morning  and  found  that  everything  was  well ; 
but  about  four  o'clock  Amos  noticed  that  Mr.  Roose 
velt  was  somewhat  restless  and  breathing  rather  heav 
ily.  He  turned  on  the  light,  went  to  his  side  and 

345 


346  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

touched  him  and  found  he  was  dead  and  notified  Mrs. 
Roosevelt  and  a  nurse  who  had  been  attending  him 
for  his  rheumatism.  He  was  lying  on  his  side  with 
his  arms  folded  in  a  sweet  sleep  with  the  most  peace 
ful  expression.  The  great  and  beautiful  spirit  had 
left  its  expression  in  the  clay  after  it  had  flown. 

About  a  year  ago  he  went  to  Roosevelt  Hospital 
with  trouble  in  his  ear.  They  operated  upon  him  two 
or  three  times,  the  last  one  leaving  him  very  weak 
and  disabled.  He  went  back  home  and  after  a  short 
rest  went  out  through  different  parts  of  the  country 
making  speeches  to  stir  up  a  more  vigorous  prosecution 
of  the  war.  In  the  early  winter  he  was  taken  down 
with  what  was  called  inflammatory  rheumatism;  his 
limb  and  arm  swelled  to  almost  twice  their  normal 
size  and  he  suffered  inexpressible  anguish.  He  paid 
no  attention  to  either  the  pain  or  the  disability,  but 
went  on  writing  his  editorials  and  sending  out  his 
messages  to  the  people  as  though  nothing  in  the  world 
was  the  matter  with  him.  They  brought  him  back 
from  the  hospital  on  Christmas  day,  and  he  was  able 
to  walk  a  little  with  Mrs.  Roosevelt  about  the  grounds. 
He  was  unable  to  take  the  strenuous  kind  of  exercise 
to  which  he  had  been  accustomed.  He  had  had  the 
African  fever  twice  during  his  hunting  trip.  In  the 
Brazilian  swamps  he  almost  perished  with  the  fever, 
from  which  he  never  recovered,  and  added  to  all  this 
was  the  death  of  his  son,  which  helped  to  break  him 
down  and,  poisoned  through  and  through,  a  clot  of 
blood  lodged  in  his  lungs  early  that  morning  and 
stopped  his  breathing. 

Relatives  were  summoned,  and  the  sad  news  was 
sent  out  to  the  world  with  special  cables  to  the  boys 
in  Europe.  That  Monday  afternoon  three  aeroplanes 
flew  over  the  home  on  Sagamore  Hill  and  each 


HIS   DEATH  347 

dropped  a  wreath  of  laurel  close  to  the  elm  tree. 
They  were  in  memory  of  the  father  and  also  of  the 
son,  their  comrade  and  hero. 

At  noon  on  Wednesday  a  brief  funeral  service  was 
held  in  the  trophy  room  at  Sagamore  Hill,  attended 
by  the  family  and  a  few  most  intimate  friends,  and 
then  the  body  was  taken  to  Christ's  Episcopal  church 
in  Oyster  Bay.  It  was  possibly  the  simplest  funeral 
service  ever  held  for  a  distinguished  man.  There  was 
no  firing  of  guns,  beating  of  drums,  blowing  of  bugles 
or  bands  of  any  kind;  there  were  no  honorary  pall 
bearers  nor  distinguished  ushers.  New  York  City  po 
licemen,  each  over  six  feet  high,  rode  on  horseback 
upon  either  side  of  the  auto  hearse  to  the  church,  and 
other  giant  policemen  from  the  metropolis  kept  guard 
about  the  building.  Some  of  the  most  distinguished 
men  of  the  nation  were  present,  the  Vice-president, 
senators,  congressmen,  governors  of  States,  represen 
tatives  of  foreign  nations  and  others.  The  church 
was  small,  holding  only  about  four  or  five  hundred, 
and  perhaps  five  thousand  others  stood  out  in  the 
snow  around  the  church.  Although  there  had  been 
a  request  that  no  flowers  be  sent  to  the  church,  the 
chancel  was  covered  with  blossoms  of  exquisite  beauty 
and  sweet  perfume.  One  of  these  was  a  wreath  of  pink 
and  white  carnations  in  accordance  with  a  message 
from  President  Wilson  in  France.  One  wreath  had  a 
white  ribbon  which  had  United  States  Senate  in  letters 
of  gold.  A  floral  emblem,  made  of  heather,  pink  roses 
and  blue  violets,  was  sent  by  a  Japanese  organization. 
The  American  Historical  Association  of  Washington 
sent  lilies,  the  Republican  National  Committee  orchids, 
violets  and  peach  blossoms.  The  American  Academy 
of  Arts  and  Letters,  the  Boone  and  Crockett  Club,  the 
American  Defence  Society,  Campfire  Club  of  Amer- 


348  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

ica,  the  National  Institution  of  Arts  and  Letters,  and 
other  organizations  beside  numerous  individuals  sent 
floral  pieces.  The  coffin  was  wrapped  in  the  Ameri 
can  flag  and  upon  it  rested  a  wreath  and  two  banners, 
one  the  Regimental  Standard  of  the  Rough  Riders 
and  the  other  the  National  Standard  of  the  Rough 
Riders.  The  wreath  was  a  bronze  laurel  and  acacia, 
the  yellow  being  the  cavalry  color.  This  was  from 
the  Rough  Riders,  a  delegation  of  which  was  present 
at  the  funeral. 

At  the  front  of  the  church  the  coffin  of  the  world's 
hero  preached  an  eloquent  sermon;  on  the  rear  wall 
of  the  church  there  were  two  sheets  of  foolscap 
paper  under  glass  which  also  preached  eloquently. 
They  had  written  upon  them  with  pen  and  ink  the 
names  of  ninety-eight  members  of  the  parish  who  had 
entered  their  country's  service,  the  first  four  names 
being  Roosevelts  and  the  one  name  of  the  whole  list 
distinguished  by  a  gold  star  being  that  of  Quentin 
Roosevelt.  The  rector,  Rev.  G.  E.  Talmage,  D.D.,  a 
dear  friend  of  Colonel  Roosevelt,  read  the  beautiful 
service  of  the  Protestant  Episcopal  church.  At  the 
request  of  Mrs.  Roosevelt  he  read  the  Colonel's  fa 
vorite  hymn,  "How  Firm  a  Foundation/'  After  the 
service,  which  was  short,  the  body  was  borne  to 
Young's  Memorial  Cemetery,  two-thirds  of  the  way 
from  the  village  to  Sagamore  Hill  and  on  the  same 
road.  It  is  the  nearest  burying  place  to  Sagamore 
Hill.  It  was  the  site  Mr.  Roosevelt  had  picked  out 
for  his  last  resting  place.  The  grave  is  at  the  top 
of  a  steep  hill.  It  is  a  beautiful  spot  indeed,  simple 
in  the  highest  degree.  There  is  no  sign  of  art  or 
display,  only  the  oaks  and  locust  trees,  and  the  cedars, 
and  the  forest  just  over  the  country  fence  and  the 
beautiful  bay  in  full  view  near  by,  and  the  rabbits 


HIS    DEATH  349 

and  quails  in  the  grass  and  the  birds  making  nests  in 
the  trees  and  singing  their  love  songs  unite  to  testify 
to  the  beauties  of  the  world  and  the  love  of  the  Crea 
tor.  And  here  the  body  of  earth 's  great  man  was  laid 
to  rest  and  his  grave  was  covered  with  flowers. 

Theodore  Roosevelt  needs  no  monument.  His  signal 
and  heroic  services  are  monuments  erected  in  every 
part  of  our  land  and  throughout  the  world,  and  yet 
we,  the  living,  need  the  monument  for  him,  not  only 
one  in  memory  and  affection,  but  also  the  monuments 
of  stone,  some  large,  tall  shaft  or  figure  that  shall  re 
mind  the  coming  generations  of  the  great  giant  that 
lived  and  loved  and  wrought  for  them.  His  friends 
rejoice  to  know  that  a  fund  of  ten  million  dollars  is 
to  be  raised  to  set  up  suitable  memorials  for  him  in 
different  parts  of  the  country,  one  to  include  a  park 
at  Oyster  Bay  and  Young's  Cemetery.  This,  one  of 
the  simplest  burying  places  on  earth,  on  account  of 
this  precious  dust  has  been  transmuted  into  one  of 
the  most  sacred  and  famed  cemeteries  in  the  world. 

The  sudden  news  of  Theodore  Roosevelt's  death 
shocked  the  world,  and  from  every  section  and  calling 
of  this  country  and  from  distinguished  men  abroad, 
including  the  heads  of  many  of  the  governments,  came 
messages  of  condolence  to  the  home  on  Sagamore  Hill. 
The  one  from  King  George  was  as  follows : 

The  Queen  and  I  have  heard  with  feelings  of  deep  re 
gret  of  the  death  of  your  distinguished  husband,  and  we 
offer  our  most  sincere  sympathy  for  your  irreparable  loss. 
We  had  a  great  personal  regard  for  him,  and  we  always 
enjoyed  meeting  him.  He  will  be  missed  by  many  friends 
in  this  country  to  whom  he  endeared  himself  by  his  at 
tractive  character  and  many  talents. 

The  message  of  Queen  Alexandra  was: 
I  am  indeed  grieved  to  hear  of  the  death  of  your  great 


350  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

and  distinguished  husband,  for  whom  I  had  the  greatest 
regard.  Please  accept  my  deepest  sympathy  on  the  ir 
reparable  loss  you  have  suffered. 

Lloyd  George  cabled  to  Mrs.  Roosevelt  the  follow 
ing  message : 

I  am  deeply  shocked  to  have  the  news  of  your  distin 
guished  husband's  death.  I  feel  sure  I  speak  for  the  British 
people  when  I  tell  you  how  much  we  all  here  sympathize 
with  you  in  your  great  bereavement.  Mr.  Roosevelt  was  a 
great  and  inspiring  figure  far  beyond  his  country's  shores, 
and  the  world  is  the  poorer  for  his  loss. 

Rudyard  Kipling  said : 

Colonel  Roosevelt's  death  means  an  incalculable  loss  to 
his  own  land  and  to  that  new  world  which  all  men  hope 
to  see.  It  is  as  though  Bunyan's  Great  Heart  had  died 
in  the  midst  of  his  pilgrimage,  for  he  was  the  greatest 
proved  American  of  our  generation. 

President  Woodrow  Wilson,  shocked  and  grieved, 
cabled  the  following  message: 

It  becomes  my  sad  duty  to  announce  officially  the  death 
of  Theodore  Roosevelt,  President  of  the  United  States  from 
September  14,  1901,  to  March  4,  1909,  which  occurred  at  his 
home  at  Sagamore  Hill,  Oyster  Bay,  New  York,  at  4:15 
o'clock  in  the,  morning  of  January  6,  1919.  In  his  death 
the  United  States  has  lost  one  of  its  most  distinguished 
and  patriotic  citizens,  who  had  endeared  himself  to  the 
people  by  his  strenuous  devotion  to  their  interests  and  to 
the  public  interests  of  his  country. 

As-  president  of  the  Police  Board  of  his  native  city,  as 
member  of  the  legislature  and  Governor  of  his  state,  as 
Civil  .Service  Commissioner,  as  Assistant  Secretary  of  the 
Navy,  as  Vice-President,  as  President  of  the  United  States, 
he  displayed  administrative  powers  of  a  signal  order  and 
conducted  the  affairs  of  these  various  offices  with  a  con 
centration  of  effort  and  a  watchful  care  which  permitted 
no  divergence  from  the  line  of  duty  he  has  definitely  set 
for  himself. 

In  the  war  with  Spain  he  displayed  singular  initiative  and 


HIS    DEATH  351 

energy  and  distinguished  himself  among  the  commanders 
of  the  army  in  the  field.  As  President  he  awoke  the  na 
tion  to  the  dangers  of  private  control  which  lurked  in  our 
financial  and  industrial  systems.  It  was  by  thus  arrest 
ing  the  attention  and  stimulating  the  purpose  of  the  coun 
try  that  he  opened  the  way  for  subsequent  necessary  and 
beneficent  reforms. 

His  private  life  was  characterized  by  a  simplicity,  a 
virtue  and  an  affection  worthy  of  all  admiration  and  emu 
lation  by  the  people  of  America. 

In  testimony  of  the  respect  in  which  his  memory  is  held 
by  the  government  and  people  of  the  United  States,  I  do 
hereby  direct  that  the  flags  of  the  White  House  and  the 
several  departmental  buildings  be  displayed  at  half-staff 
for  a  period  of  thirty  days,  and  that  suitable  military  and 
naval  honors  under  orders  of  the  Secretaries  of  War  and 
of  the  Navy  be  rendered  on  the  day  of  the  funeral. 

Done  this  seventh  day  'of  January,  in  the  year  of  our 
Lord  one  thousand  nine  hundred  and  nineteen,  and  of  the 
independence  of  the  United  States  of  America  the  one  hun 
dred  and  forty-third. 

WOODEOW  WILSON. 
By  the  President, 

FRANK  L.  POLK, 

Acting  Secretary  of  State. 

Theodore  Koosevelt,  a  young  man,  was  married  to 
Miss  Carow  in  the  old  St.  George 's  church  in  London. 
In  the  same  city  in  "Westminster  Abbey  the  world 
hero  was  honored  by  one  of  the  most  important  me 
morial  services  ever  held.  The  beautiful,  timely  ad 
dress  by  Archdeacon  Carnegie  was  as  follows  : 

What  were  the  qualities  which  have  called  forth  this 
widespread  response  of  enthusiastic  appreciation?  The 
question  is  well  worth  asking.  Its  answer  would  reveal 
to  us  something,  at  any  rate,  of  that  spiritual  heritage 
which  the  two  great  families  of  the  Anglo-Saxon  race  share 
in  common  and  which  is,  let  me  emphasize  the  fact,  the 
ultimate  basis  of  our  hope  for  the  world's  future. 

Let  us  try  to  visualize  the  man — to  form  a  mental  pic 
ture  of  some  of  his  chief  characteristics.  A  forceful  and 


352  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

magnetic  personality,  vital  and  strenuous  in  work  and  play, 
a  loyal  and  warm-hearted  friend,  r.  fair-dealing  opponent, 
an  enthusiastic  sportsman,  a  devoted  patriot,  an  active  and 
resourceful  politician,  the  soul  of  honor  and  straightforward 
ness  in  his  public  and  private  transactions,  courageous  and 
fearless  and  enterprising. 

Such  are  some  of  the  qualities  which  arrest  our  atten 
tion  as  we  read  his  life's  story,  all  of  them  qualities  which 
men,  brought  up  in  the  Anglo-Saxon  atmosphere,  instinct 
ively  appreciate  and  admire.  But  the  picture  thus  pre 
sented  is  not  complete.  I  have  spoken  to  several  people 
who  had  the  advantage  of  close  personal  contact  with  Mr. 
Roosevelt,  and  they  are  unanimous  in  saying  that  the  full 
secret  of  his  influence  must  be  sought  at  a  deeper  level — 
that  it  was  ultimately  due  to  the  intensity  of  his  moral 
convictions  and  the  decisive  clearness  of  his  moral  vision. 
His  distinctive  feat,  as  some  one  has  put  it,  was  to  re 
discover  the  Ten  Commandments.  To  him  the  moral  law 
was  the  supreme  and  all-embracing  law  of  human  life, 
tolerating  no  rivals,  admitting  of  no  competitors.  When 
conscience  had  spoken,  its  claims  for  obedience  were  abso 
lute  and  unavoidable;  there  must  be  no  dallying  or  delay; 
right  is  right  and  wrong  is  wrong ;  the  distinction  between 
them  is  clear-cut  and  decisive;  at  aU  costs  and  hazards 
the  call  of  duty  must  be  followed;  the  only  alternative  is 
self-confusion  and  self-contempt.  It  was  thus  that  he  looked 
out  on  life;  this  was  the  master  strain  of  his  rich  and 
complex  manhood. 

And  I  think  I  am  right  in  saying  that  this  is  also  the 
master  strain  of  typical  British  manhood.  However  much 
the  average  Englishman  may  evade  the  claims  of  conscience 
in  his  ordinary  conduct,  at  heart  he  recognizes  their  su 
premacy  and  accords  his  chief  respect  to  those  who  meet 
them.  Moreover,  when  these  claims  are  presented  in  em 
phatic  and  urgent  terms  he  seldom  fails  to  respond  to 
them.  We  witnessed  such  a  response  on  a  large  scale  at 
the  beginning  of  this  war.  With  the  invasion  of  Belgium 
the  moral  issue  suddenly  became  unmistakable ;  there  could 
be  no  reasonable  doubt  as  to  its  character.  The  British 
people  here  and  beyond  the  seas  recognized  this,  and  spon 
taneously  and  immediately  ranged  themselves  and  all  they 
possessed  on  the  side  of  the  moral  law. 


HIS    DEATH  353 

On  similar  grounds  the  American  people  can  make  a 
similar  claim.  Their  traditional  detachment  from  Euro 
pean  affairs  made  it  less  easy  for  them  to  recognize  at 
once  the  crucial  character  of  the-  situation  which  had 
arisen  here.  But  when  this  became  clear  to  them  their  re 
action  was  in  no  wise  different  from  ours. 

And  then  a  great  thing  happened.  Deep  called  to  deep, 
we  and  our  kinsmen  met  on  the  moral  level,  and  we  be 
came  conscious  that  in  the  essential  things  of  life  no  dif 
ferences  divide  us,  that  with  regard  to  them  we  think 
and  feel  as  they  do,  that  our  fundamental  aims  and  as 
pirations  and  ideals  are  identical  with  theirs.  It  is  not 
overstating  the  case  to  say  that  this  may  prove  to  be  by 
far  the  most  important  outcome  of  this  war. 

Now,  in  the  process  which  led  up  to  tin's  result,  it  was 
given  to  Theodore  Roosevelt  to-  play  a  leading  part. 
.  He  knew  his  fellow  countrymen,  knew  that  when 
once  their  attention  was  aroused  they  would  feel  as  he 
felt  and  act  as  he  would  have  them  act.  He  was  their 
prophet  in  the  strictest  sense  of  the  word — one  who  in 
terpreted  to  them  the  secrets  of  their  hearts  and  revealed 
to  them  principles  already  implanted  there.  He  spent  him 
self  in  the  efforts  which  he  made,  he  -sacrificed  his  life  for 
the  cause  as  truly  as  if  he  had  laid  it  down  on  the  battle 
field.  But  before  he  died  he  had  accomplished  his  al 
lotted  task.  He  had  passed  on  to  his  fellow  countrymen 
the  message  he  had  received  and  had  heard  them  respond 
ing  to  it  in  conclusive  terms  of  overwhelming  power. 

It  is  small  wronder  that  they  should  feel  impelled  to  pay 
high  tribute  to  his  memory.  It  is  equally  small  wonder 
that  this  tribute  should  be  reached  here  in  the  Mother 
land  of  the  Anglo-Saxon  race. 

•We  English  are  not  intellectual  idealists.  Through  long 
experience  in  self-government  we  have  learned  that  most 
practical  problems  are  far  too  complex  and  intricate  to  ad 
mit  of  theoretical  solutions.  So,  though  we  like  listening 
to  idealists  and  discussing  their  views,  when  confronted 
with  a  concrete  situation  we  are  disposed  to  deal  with  it 
by  instinctive  rather  than  by  intellectual  methods.  But 
we  are  at  heart  moral  idealists.  The  instinct  on  which 
we  ultimately  depend  is  the  moral  instinct.  ...  In 
the  long  run  it  is  men  of  character  who  command  our  con 
fidence  and  mold  our  opinion.  It  is  on  their  judgment  and 


354  THEODOEE   ROOSEVELT 

guidance  that  we  finally  depend.  Sincere,  straightforward, 
single-minded  men,  who  believe  in  goodness  and  in  its  ulti 
mate  victory,  and  are  not  afraid  to  proclaim  and  act  upon 
their  belief,  and,  if  necessary,  to  face  opposition  and  to  in 
cur  opprobrium  in  its  behalf. 

Such  a  man  was  Theodore  Roosevelt.  In  our  common  ad 
miration  for  his  life  and  character  we  and  our  American 
kinsmen  reveal  ourselves  to  one  another  and  become  con 
scious  of  our  essential  affinity.  He  has  contributed  no 
small  share  to  the  movement  for  reunion  between  us,  too 
long  delayed  by  past  estrangements  and  present  prejudices 
and  misunderstandings.  It  is  altogether  fitting  that  we 
should  remember  with  thankfulness  and  with  all  honor 
one  to  whom  it  was  given  by  God  to  render  such  notable 
service  to  his  fellowmen. 


ADDRESSES  BY  DEPEW  AND  BISHOP 
WILSON 


CHAPTER  XXVI 

ADDRESSES    BY    HON.    CHAUNCEY    DEPEW 
AND  BISHOP  WILSON 

THE  New  York  City  Methodist  Preachers'  Meet 
ing,  composed  of  a  thousand  members,  said  to 
be  the  largest  ministers'  meeting  in  the  world, 
held  a  Roosevelt  Memorial  Service  the  Monday  morn 
ing  after  the   Colonel's  death   at  which   the   Hon. 
Chauncey  Depew  and  .Bishop  Luther  B.  Wilson  made 
eloquent  addresses. 

Mr.  Depew,  though  eighty-five  years  old,  spoke  with 
his  old-time  fire,  humor  and  eloquence  for  over  an 
hour.  He  cheerfully  gave  me  the  full  text  of  his  ad 
dress.  Much  of  Mr.  Depew 's  address  is  here  given: 

MY  FRIENDS  :  It  is  a  very  great  pleasure  for  me  to  meet 
you  here  this  morning.  I  am  glad  to  comply  with  your  re 
quest  to  join  in  your  service  for  Theodore  Roosevelt.  He 
was  my  friend  from  his  boyhood  until  his  death.  No  one 
could  know  him  without  having  for  him  the  profoundest 
affection  and  the  greatest  admiration.  He  was  one  of  the 
most  extraordinary  men  of  our  period,  or  of  any  period; 
he  made  history  and  was  a  most  important  factor  in  the 
history  of  his  time.  His  whole  public  career  is  lined  with 
monuments  in  beneficent  legislation  and  individual  achieve 
ment  testifying  to  services  for  his  country  and  the  world 
of  the  greatest  value.  He  was  born  two  years  before  the 
breaking  out  of  the  Civil  War  and  was  President  of  the 
United  States  when  it  was  the  necessity  of  the  Executive 

357 


358  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

to  have  a  united  country  in  support  of  policies  for  the 
benefit  of  the  whole  "United  States.  For  this  destiny  he 
was  fortunate  in  his  ancestors :  his  father  of  Dutch  and 
Scotch  ancestry,  was  a  leading  citizen  of  New  York  and 
one  of  the  most  useful  and  prominent  citizens  of  the  North ; 
his  mother  was  from  Georgia  and  represented  the  best 
blood  and  traditions  of  the  South.  He  could  appeal,  as  no 
President  had  been  able  to  since  the  Civil  War,  to  all  sec 
tions  of  the  country,  North,  South,  East  and  West. 

He  had  a  consuming  desire  to  be  all  the  time  doing 
something  and  .producing  something.  When  he  was  Gov 
ernor,  with  all  the  exactions  of  the  place,  he,  nevertheless, 
found  time  to  write  books.  He  was  under  contract  with 
his  publishers  on  both  the  African  hunting  trip  and  the 
Brazilian  journey  of  exploration.  After  a  day  of  rough 
travel  and  perilous  adventure,  when  all  his  companions 
were  used  up  and  asleep,  he  sat  by  a  box  on  which  was  a 
candle  and  by  its  flickering  light  wrote  the  day's  chapter 
for  his  book.  He  was  daily  contributing  to  the  press  and 
to  weekly  and  monthly  magazines,  constantly  giving  inter 
views  and  making  speeches,  and  yet  in  some  mysterious 
way  found  time  for  conferences  with  political  leaders,  with 
men  of  letters,  with  distinguished  visitors,  with  his  pub 
lishers,  the  managers  and  the  editors  of  his  magazines  and 
newspapers. 

He  was  a  frequent  attendant  at  social  functions,  and  the 
most  desired  and  welcomed  of  guests  at  public  and  private 
dinners.  He  was  temperate  in  all  things,  but  a  glutton  for 
work. 

His  activities  were  during  the  greatest  period  of  indus 
trial  development  which  this  country  has  ever  known,  a 
period  in  which  masterful  men  developed  in  an  unpre 
cedented  way  our  natural  resources,  our  manufacturing  and 
our  transportation  with  results  that  were  enormously  bene 
ficial  to  communities  and  multitudes  of  people,  but  yielded 
fabulous  returns  to  the  architects. 

Colonel  Roosevelt  admired  these  men  and  their  achieve 
ments,  but  always  looked  upon  them  and  what  they  did 
from  the  standpoint  of  public  safety  and  public  service.  His 
clear  vision  was  never  obscured.  He  had  no  fear  of  big 
business,  and  to  his  mind  the  bigger  the  better,  if  the  best 
results  for  all  could  be  had  that  way;  at  the  same  time, 


APPRECIATION   ADDRESSES  359 

if  in  his  judgment  the  process  was  becoming  dangerous  to 
the  public  welfare  because  of  its  tendency  to  monopoly 
he  became  at  once  its  enemy. 

As  New  York  Police  Commissioner  he  startled,  aroused 
and  enraged  a  wide  open  city  where  the  law  against  vice 
had  always  been  laxly  enforced,  if  at  all,  by  announcing 
as  his  policy  the  rigid  enforcement  of  the  laws.  Saloon 
keepers  and  gamblers,  votaries  of  pleasure  and  all  that 
multitude  who  in  a  great  city,  if  unrestrained,  violate  the 
law,  were  instantly  up  in  arms.  They  formed  a  great  pa 
rade  for  personal  liberty,  but  to  their  amazement  found 
occupying  the  front  seat  on  the  reviewing  stand  the  new 
Police  Commissioner.  A  German  brewer  shouting,  "Where 
is  Roosevelt  now?"  was  amazed  by  hearing  the  Police  Com 
missioner  say,  "Here  I  am,  my  friend,  what  can  I  do  for 
you?"  The  surprise  reversed  the  German  mentality,  the 
brewer  called  three  cheers  for  Roosevelt  and  that  part  of 
the  procession  collapsed.  Wherever  in  the  district  infested 
by  gangs  and  gunmen  the  patrolman's  life  wag  always  in 
danger,  there,  at  all  hours,  would  be  found  strolling  along 
and  in  constant  peril  of  assassination,  Mr.  Roosevelt.  Dis 
cipline  and  efficiency  soon  made  the  New  York  police  the 
finest  body  in  the  world. 

In  a  few  months  after  his  inauguration,  McKinley  was 
assassinated,  Roosevelt  became  President  and  gave  to 
the  country  seven  years  of  the  most  eventful  and  fruitful 
Presidential  terms  in  our  history.  An  incident  of  the  con 
vention  may  be  of  interest.  There  being  no  contests  be 
cause  the  nominations  were  unanimously  agreed  upon,  the 
orators  of  the  convention  had  no  opportunity  of  presenting 
the  claims  of  various  candidates,  so  they  exhausted  them 
selves  and  exhausted  the  audience  by  making  practically 
the  same  speeches  over  and  over  again  for  Mr.  McKinley 
and  Governor  Roosevelt.  The  crowd  had  ceased  to  listen 
and  had  begun  to  scrape  the  speakers  down,  when  a  West 
ern  delegation  came  to  me  and  said,  "You  never  get  out 
our  way,  and  we  would  like  to  hear  you  speak."  Roosevelt 
as  a  fellow  delegate  sat  immediately  in  front  of  me.  He 
turned  around  and  said  in  his  quick  way,  "Yes,  yes,  he 
will  speak.  He  must  give  us  something  new;  if  these 
bores  keep  this  tip  any  longer  it  will  beat  the  ticket."  And 
he  seized  me  and  practically  threw  me  upon  the  platform. 
It  was  one  of  those  occasions  where  a  story  is  the  only  sal- 


360  THEODORE    ROOSEVELT 

vation  for  a  speaker.  Near  me  sat  a  portentously  solemn 
United  States  Senator  whose  platitudinous  speech  had  al 
ready  been  delivered  three  times.  As  I  started  the  story 
he  turned  to  the  Chairman  and  in  a  horrified  and  tragic 
voice  said,  "Great  Heavens!  The  solemnity  and  dignity 
of  this  historic  occasion  is  to  be  ruined  by  a  story." 

Great  and  successful  leadership  requires  many  qualities. 
I  have  known,  beginning  with  Lincoln,  with  considerable 
intimacy  every  President  of  the  United  States.  None  of 
them  had  all  these  qualities  except  Mr.  Roosevelt.  He  was 
a  born  leader  of  men.  His  industry  was  phenomenal,  but 
in  addition  was  that  intelligent  work  which  knew  where  to 
find  what  he  wanted  and  his  marvellous  intelligence  which 
grasped,  absorbed  and  utilized  this  material  with  the  pre 
cision  of  a  machine. 

He  loved  companionship  and  found  time  to  enjoy  his 
friends.  When  that  friend  left,  he  had  contributed  all  he 
possessed  to  the  materials  useful  to  this  great  Executive. 
He  might  be  a  college  professor,  a  United  States  Senator, 
a  Foreign  Ambassador,  a  State  Governor,  a  Justice  of  the 
Supreme  Court,  a  labor  leader,  a  cowboy  from  the  ranches, 
a  hunter  from  the  mountains,  a  traveler  from  overseas — all 
were  equally  welcome  and  all  equal  contributors. 

In  looking  over  the  acts  recommended  and  the  laws 
passed  during  Roosevelt's  administration,  we  find  a  mass 
of  constructive  work,  of  progress  and  reform,  which  gathers, 
condenses  and  puts  in  practice  the  accumulated  necessities 
which  had  arisen  since  the  close  of  the  Civil  War. 

We  rejoiced  in  our  marvelous  prosperity,  at  the  same  time 
it  was  our  greatest  peril.  A  few  masterful  men  were  com 
bining  the  industries  of  the  country  and  had  almost  per 
fected  the  consolidation  of  its  transportation.  Roosevelt 
alone,  of  his  co-temporaries,  with  his  unequaled  insight  in 
to  public  opinion,  saw  a  gathering  storm.  He  sensed  an  un 
rest  which  was  culminating  into  dangerous  hatred  of  suc 
cess.  He  set  about  vigorously  to  correct  these  evils  and 
succeeded.  His  railway  legislation  did  away  with  many 
of  the  abuses  which  had  necessarily  grown  up  with  the 
rapid  progress  of  railway  building  and  consolidation.  He 
put  a  curb  on  great  Trusts  and  blocked  the  way  of  gen 
eral  monopoly.  He  incurred  the  bitter  and  venomous  hos 
tility  of  powerful  interests  in  the  financial  world,  in  specu- 


©  Underwood  &   Underwood,  N.   Y. 
ON    RETURN    FROM     HIS    AFRICAN    HUNTING    EXPEDITION. 


APPRECIATION   ADDRESSES  361 

lative  circles  and  in  the  stock  exchanges,  but  when  he  sent, 
as  he  was  in  the  habit  of  doing,  for  captains  of  industry, 
he  converted  at  least  one  of  the  ablest  of  them  by  putting 
in  a  sentence  a  pregnant  truth,  "Sir,  you  have  to  deal  with 
me  now,  or  the  mob  later." 

Mr.  Roosevelt,  on  his  way  home  from  his  hunting  and  ex 
ploration  expedition  in  Africa,  was  received  with  signal 
honors,  as  if  still  President,  by  Great  Britain,  France  and 
the  Kaiser.  He  was  hailed  with  the  same  enthusiasm  and 
demonstrations  which  have  greeted  President  Wilson,  both 
in  London  and  Paris. 

It  was  the  President's  psychology  of  public  men  and  pub 
lic  sentiment  of  foreign  nations  which  led  him  to  solve  and 
settle  threatened  difficulties  with  Japan.  Through  the  East 
specially,  and  to  a  large  degree  in  Europe,  there  was  al 
most  absolute  ignorance  of  the  strength  and  power  of  the 
United  States.  The  American  battle  fleet  was  ordered  to 
sail  around  the  world.  This  formidable  array  of  war  ves 
sels  of  the  most  modern  design  and  equipment  and  ready 
for  immediate  action  produced  a  profound  impression  in 
all  countries.  It  was  peace  by  demonstration  of  prepared 
ness  and  power.  It  was  the  fundamental  article  in  Roose 
velt's  creed  that  preparedness  and  power  in  a  free  and 
liberty-loving  nation  instead  of  provoking  war  promoted 
peace. 

He  first  among  our  public  men  saw  what  must  be  our 
position  in  this  world  war.  He  found  the  great  mass  of  his 
countrymen  satisfied  with  their  isolation  and  pacifists  in 
sentiment,  but  in  season  and  out  of  season  he  preached  pre 
paredness  and  the  peril  to  us  at  home  and  to  our  institu 
tions  of  the  triumph  of  autocracy  upon  the  field  of  battle 
in  Europe.  It  was  the  wonderful  effect  of  his  stirring  ap 
peals  which  made  it  possible  for  the  President  to  secure 
universal  assent  for  the  declaration  of  war.  Roosevelt  was 
never  more  himself  in  that  faculty,  which  was  one  of  his 
strongest  points,  of  practicing  what  he  preached  and  placing 
himself  in  the  forefront  of  danger  than  in  what  he  did  when 
our  country  entered  the  war.  He  proposed  to  raise  a 
division  and  go  with  it  at  once  to  France.  That  was  denied, 
but  he  sent  his  four  sons.  When  one  of  them  was  wounded 
and  the  other  killed  the  pathetic  answer  of  this  bereaved 
patriot  was,  "Better  so,  than  that  they  should  not  have 
gone." 


362  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

I  was  in  the  Senate  during  the  whole  of  his  Presidency 
and  Haw  him  nearly  every  day.  It  was  a  delight  to  visit 
the  Executive  office  or  to  meet  him  in  the  closer  associa 
tions  of  the  White  House.  He  was  the  most  outspoken  of 
public  men.  As  I  was  entering  his  room  one  morning  a  Sen 
ator  was  coming  out.  This  Senator  had  made  some  request 
of  the  President  which  had  angered  him.  He  shouted  to  me 
80  the  Senator  could  hear  him  and  everybody  else:  "Do  you 
know  that  man?"  I  answered,  "Yes,  he  is  a  colleague  of 
mine  in  the  Senate."  "But,"  the  President  shouted,  "he  is 
a  crook."  Subsequent  events  proved  the  President  correct, 
the  man  came  within  the  clutches  of  the  criminal  law. 

Two  of  our  ex-Presidents  are  still  a  force  with  their  pairty 
and  the  people.  They  are  Jefferson  and  Jackson.  Jefferson's 
influence  was  because  of  his  versatility,  political  foresight 
and  a  literary  talent.  Jackson's  by  his  iron  will  and  com 
mand  of  men.  Mr.  Roosevelt  united  in  himself  all  the 
power,  talent  and  force  of  these  two  remarkable  leaders. 

He  was  intensely  human.  He  had  no  airs  nor  fads  nor 
frills.  His  cordiality  was  infectious,  his  friendship  never 
failed.  No  man  of  his  generation  has  so  long  held  public 
esteem  and  confidence  with  continuing  admiration  and  ex 
pectation.  His  work  in  the  world  was  great  and  greatly 
done.  It  is  a  commonplace  when  a  great  man  dies  to  say : 
"It  is  not  for  his  co-temporaries  to  pass  judgment  upon  him, 
that  must  be  left  to  posterity  and  to  the  historian  after  the 
passions  of  his  time  have  been  allayed."  There  are  only  two 
exceptions  to  this  .maxim,  one  is  Washington,  the  other  ia 
Roosevelt.  The  testimony  at  the  time  about  Washington 
is  the  same  as  the  Judgment  of  posterity.  With  this  mag 
nificent  fighter,  this  reckless  crusader,  this  hard-hitter,  the 
world  is  stilled  and  awed  when  the  news  of  his  death  is 
flashed  over  wires  and  cables,  but  the  instant  voice  of  friend 
and  enemy  is  the  sifme.  All  recognize  the  purity  of  his 
motives,  the  unselfishness  of  his  work  and  his  unadulter 
ated  Americanism.  His  last  expression  sent  to  a  public 
meeting  in  New  York,  the  evening  before  he  died,  is  the 
thought  upon  whose  realization  rests  the  security  of  our  in 
stitutions  and.  the  future  of  our  country.  It  ia  that  there 
is  no  place  in  our  land  for  divided  allegiance.  Every  citi 
zen  must  be  wholly  American. 

Bishop  Wilson,  who  had  just  come  from  the  great 


APPRECIATION  ADDRESSES  363 

work  he  had  rendered  his  country  in  France,  made  a 
powerful  address.  The  following  is  his  estimate  of 
Colonel  Roosevelt : 

The  flags  of  the  nation  are  at  half-mast  and  the  bells  of 
the  cities  have  tolled  out  their  solemn  announcement  that 
one,  who  for  eight  years  bad  occupied  the  Presidency  of  the 
Great  Republic,  has  passed  from  us.  Beyond  the  formal 
recognition  of  the  announcement,  however,  of'this  event,  the 
sorrow  is  registered  in  the  heart  of  the  world.  Theodore 
Roosevelt  represented  in  his  personality  the  North  and  the 
South  and  the  rugged  loyalty  to  conscience  of  Holland, 
while  the  sunlight  upon  the  mountain  peaks  of  America,  and 
the  broad  sweeping  winds  of  her  prairies,  and  the  vibrant 
life  of  her  cities  were  wrought  together,  with  the  culture 
of  her  schools  and  the  reverence  of  her  churches,  in  the 
fine  ideals  which  for  sixty  years  dominated  his  life.  He  was 
a  comrade  of  men.  There  was  no  condition  in  which  they 
lived  into  which  he  was  not  willing  to  enter,  that  he  might 
understand  the  problems  which  they  fought  to  solve  and 
weigh  the  burdens  under  which  they  toiled.  There  was  no 
monotony  of  peaceful  days,  no  danger  of  war  troubled  times 
was  sufficient  to  discourage  or  disconcert  him.  He  despised 
no  groups  of  men,  however  lowly ;  he  feared  none,  however 
lordly.  No  barrier,  or  race,  or  mountain,  or  tongue,  or  sea 
confined  him.  He  was  a  comrade  to  all  the  world  because 
he  was  a  brother  to  humanity.  But  where  he  was 
welcomed  as  comrade,  iie  was  likely  to  continue  as 
leader. 

There  was  a  vitality  in  his  thought,  a  keenness  to 
his  vision,  which  enabled  him  to  penetrate  the  dis 
guise  of  the  superficial  and  feel  the  lure  of  the  long 
road.  There  was  an  assertion  of  conscience  in  expressed 
hatred  -of  sham  and  of  unreality,  only  equalled  by 
his  avowed  love  for  reality  and  truth.  His  words  quiv 
ered  and  blazed  as  he  waged  conflict  with  wrong,  or  as  he 
assumed  the  advocacy  of  right.  They  ran  like  the  tide  of 
the  sea.  Measured  from  the  base  of  his  convictions  to  the 
altitudes  of  his  ideals,  he  was  the  tallest  American  since 
the  days  of  Lincoln,  probably  the  best  known  citizen  of  the 
world  in  which  he  lived,  and  the  best  loved.  His  door  stood 
open  to  the  weak  and  to  the  mighty,  to  the  individual  and 


364  THEODORE    ROOSEVELT 

to  the  multitude,  for  his  whole  career  seemed  based  upon  the 
belief  that  the  other  man  might  easily  add  to  the  store  of 
his  knowledge,  or  help  in  rendering  knowledge  more  effec 
tive  in  operation,  -and  as  the  door  stood  open  for  the  en 
trance  of  others,  so  it  stood  open  for  the  going  forth  of 
himself. 

Sometimes  it  seemed  to  the  friend  or  enemy  that  he 
was  taking  part  in  the  affairs  of  the  country,  or  of  the 
world  beyond,  the  limit  of  a  fine  propriety,  but  nothing  on 
any  side  of  any  sea  was  foreign  to  him,  while  it  concerned 
the  welfare  of  men.  If  the  ear  of  the  too  critical  hearer 
missed  the  quality  of  the  highest  wisdom  in  what  he  said, 
or  if,  from  a  mere  observer's-  place  of  aloofness  it  seemed 
that  action  lacked  discretion,  no  one  who  came  near  enough 
to  hear  his  word,  or  felt  the  impact  of  his  personality,  could 
doubt  either  the  friendship-  for  men  or  that,  in  what  he  said, 
he  was  seeking  to  follow  the  light  as  it  was  given  to  him 
to  see  the  light.  Whatever  else  he  was,  he  was  no  "reed 
shaken  by  the  wind,"  he  was  likely  to  hold  steadfastly  to 
the  way  on  which  the  light  fell,  and  that  steadfastness  and 
conviction  was  not  ossified  self-will.  There  was  in  his  love 
of  certain  good,  in  his  wrath  against  certain  evil  the  fast 
ness  of  the  hills,  and  in  his  dealing  with  all  things  an  un 
disguised  constancy,  but  where  movements  of  the  times 
wrought  change  in  the  great  outstanding  facts  of  civiliza 
tion,  he  was  never  unresponsive.  Among  his  most  recent 
words  were  those  in  which  he  came  to  advocate  a  union  of 
America  and  Great  Britain,  a  measure  which  would  have 
been  impossible  in  his  thinking  even  five  years  ago.  He  was 
the  towering  American  of  our  day,  but,  in  his  Americanism, 
the  desire  for  his  country's  opulence,  by  commercial  exploit, 
was  not  the  first  thing.  It  was  the  relation  of  America  to 
the  life  of  the  American,  the  responsiveness  of  America  to 
the  claims  of  justice,  the  position  of  America  among  the 
nations  of  the  world  which  he  sought,  and  all  the  power  of 
conviction  and  of  ideal  had  their  consummate  expression  in 
what  he  said  during  these  last  great  years  in  which  the 
processes  of  dissolution  have  convulsed  civilization  as  when 
the  foundations  of  the  deep  are  broken  up,  but  in  which 
also  new  possibilities  have  come  to  light  even  as  when  out 
of  the  sea  new  mountains  lift  their  heads.  The  words  of 
this  great  American,  backed  by  his  offer  of  service,  by  his 
sacrifice  in  the  willing  surrender  of  his  best  loved  to  the 


APPRECIATION   ADDRESSES  365 

peril  of  the  field,  can  never  be  forgotten.  His  stalwart 
Americanism  wrought  for  the  stabilizing  of  those  very  con 
ceptions  of  ethical  ideals  for  which  he  stood,  the  sure 
foundation  of  the  world's  welfare,  however  nations  may  be 
leagued  or  humanity  be  united. 

Standing,  as  we  do,  so  near  to  the  day  of  his  departure, 
we  cannot  yet  feel  that  he  is  gone  away.  Our  personal 
friendship  is  so  assertive  that  perhaps  it  is  impossible  for 
us  rightly  to  voice  our  judgment  of  him  in  his  broader  rela 
tions  to  the  nation  -or  the  world.  We  recognize  the  immense 
forcefulness  of  his  life,  his  friendship  for  all  things  worthy, 
his  contribution  to-  the  city,  the  state  and  nation,  his  loyalty 
to  learning,  his  reverence  for  religious  things,  his  comrade 
ship  with  men,  his  discipleship  of  the  Master,  and  bowing 
in  sorrow,  not  lessened  because  in  every  land  where  the 
sun  is  shining  -men  mourn  with  us,  we  lift  our  hearts  in 
thankfulness  that  such  a  man  has  lived,  and  having  lived 
we  rejoice  thaf  his  influence  cannot  be  buried.  Lovers  of 
home,  and  native  land,  friends  of  order  and  the  common 
good,  pilgrims  on  -the  way,  comrades  in  the  great  adventure 
of  the  better  world,  we  are  conscious  of  his  presence  as  we 
sing  of  another  great  soul  marching  on. 

Appropriate  resolutions  were  prepared  and  read  by 
Rev.  G.  W.  Roesch  expressing  appreciation  and  sym 
pathy  which  were  sent  to  the  family  of  Colonel  Roose 
velt.  Old  members  say  that  the  service  was  the  most 
impressive  one  held  in  fifty  years. 


HENEY  CABOT  LODGE'S  MEMORIAL 
ORATION 


CHAPTER  XXVH 

HENRY    CABOT    LODGE'S    MEMORIAL 
ORATION 

SUNDAY,  February  9th,  was  set  apart  by  our 
nation  as  the  Roosevelt  Memorial  Day.  The 
services  and  tributes  paid  were  world-wide. 
There  was  an  impressive  service  in  Westminster  Ab 
bey.  The  service  held  in  the  American  church  in 
Paris  was  attended  by  President  Wilson,  Secretary 
Lansing,  and  other  distinguished  Americans.  In  other 
cities  of  Europe  and  other  countries  befitting  exercises 
were  held.  In  nearly  every  farm  district,  village  and 
city  of  our  own  country  audiences  met  to  sing,  to 
weep  and  to  talk  about  the  great  hero  and  leader 
who  had  been  taken  away.  Of  course  the  most  im 
pressive  service  in  America  was  the  one  appointed  by 
Congress  which  was  held  in  the  House  of  Representa 
tives.  This  was  the  first  time  in  a  generation  that 
the  officials,  legislative,  executive  and  judicial 
branches  of  the  government,  the  heads  of  the  military 
and  naval  establishments,  together  with  the  diplomatic 
representatives  of  nations,  convened  in  a  state  memor 
ial  service  for  a  private  citizen.  No  more  appropriate 
selection  of  a  speaker  could  have  been  made  than  that 
of  Senator  Henry  Cabot  Lodge,  a  friend  of  Mr.  Roose 
velt  at  Harvard  and  throughout  his  life.  While  he 
was  President  of  the  United  States  Mr.  Roosevelt 

369 


370  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

made  a  speech  at  a  Harvard  dinner  in  which  he  said, 
"I  shall  not  speak  of  the  junior  senator,  another  Har 
vard  man,  Cabot  Lodge,  because  it  would  be  difficult 
for  me  to  discuss  in  public  one  who  is  my  closest, 
staunchest,  and  most  loyal  personal  friend/' 

Senator  Lodge 's  oration  was  a  superb  one,  rising  in 
grandeur  to  the  man  and  the  hour,  which  is  the  most 
that  could  be  said  of  it.  After  reviewing  the  bio 
graphical  details  of  the  life  of  his  friend,  Mr.  Lodge 
continued : 

There  was  no  hour  down  to  the  end  when  Theodore  Roose 
velt  would  not  turn  aside  from  everything  else  to  preach 
the  doctrine  of  Americanism,  of  the  principles  and  the  faith 
upon  which  American  government  rested,  and  which  all  true 
Americans  should  wear  in  their  heart  of  hearts.  He  was  a 
great  patriot,  a  great  man;  above  all,  a  great  American. 
His  country  was  the  ruling,  mastering  passion  of  his  life 
from  the  beginning  even  unto  the  end. 

What  a  man  was  is  ever  more  important  than  what  he 
did,  because  it  is  upon  what  he  was  that  all  his  achieve 
ment  depends  and  his  value  and  meaning  to  his  fellow  men 
must  finally  rest. 

Theodore  Roosevelt  always  believed  that  character  was 
of  greater  worth  and  moment  than  anything  else.  He  pos 
sessed  abilities  of  the  first  order,  which  he  was  disposed  to 
underrate,  because  he  set  so  much  greater  store  upon  the 
moral  qualities  which  we  bring  together  under  the  single 
word  "character." 

Let  me  speak  first  of  his  abilities.  He  had  a  powerful, 
well-trained,  ever-active  mind.  He  thought  clearly,  inde 
pendently,  and  with  originality  and  imagination.  These 
priceless  gifts  were  sustained  by  an  extraordinary  power  of 
acquisition,  joined  to  a  greater  quickness  of  apprehension,  a 
greater  swiftness  in  seizing  upon  the  essence  of  a  question, 
than  I  have  ever  happened  to  see  in  any  other  man.  His 
reading  began  with  natural  history,  then  went  to  general 
history,  and  thence  to  the  whole  field  of  literature.  He  had 
a  capacity  for  concentration  which  enabled  him  to  read 
with  remarkable  rapidity  anything  which  he  took  up,  if 


MEMORIAL  ORATION  371 

only  for  a  moment,  and  which  separated  him  for  the  time 
being  from  everything  going  on  about  him.  The  subjects 
upon  which  he  was  well  and  widely  informed  would,  if 
enumerated,  fill  a  large  space,  and  to  this  power  of  acquisi 
tion  was  united  not  only  a  tenacious  but  an  extraordinary 
accurate  memory.  It  was  never  safe  to  contest  with  him 
on  any  question  of  fact  or  figures,  whether  they  related  to 
the  ancient  Assyrians  or  to  the  present-day  conditions  of 
the  tribes  of  central  Africa,  to  the  Syracusan  Expedition, 
as  told  by  Thucydides,  or  to  protective  colorings  in  birds 
and  animals.  He  knew  and  held  details  always  at  command, 
but  he  was  not  mastered  by  them.  He  never  failed  to  see 
the  forest  on  account  of  the  trees  t>r  the  city  on  account 
of  the  houses. 

He  made  himself  a  writer,  not  only  of  occasional  ad 
dresses  and  essays,  but  of  books.  He  had  the  trained  thor 
oughness  of  the  historian,  as  he  showed  in  his  history  of 
the  War  of  1812  and  of  the  "Winning  of  the  West,"  and 
nature  had  endowed  him  with  that  most  enviable  of  gifts, 
the  faculty  of  narrative  and  the  art  of  the  teller  of  tales. 
He  knew  how  to  weigh  evidence  in  the  historical  scales  and 
how  to  depict  character.  He  learned  to  write  with  great 
ease  and  fluency.  He  was  always  vigorous,  always  ener 
getic,  always  clear  and  forcible  in  everything  he  wrote — 
nobody  could  ever  misunderstand  him — and  when  he  al 
lowed  himself  time  and  his  feelings  were  deeply  engaged  he 
gave  to  the  world  many  pages  of  beauty  as  well  as  power, 
not  only  in  thought  but  in  form  and  style.  At  the  same 
time  he  made  himself  a  public  speaker,  and  here  again, 
through  a  practice  probably  unequaled  in  amount,  he  be 
came  one  of  the  most  effective  in  all  our  history.  In  speak 
ing,  as  in  writing,  he  was  always  full  of  force  and  energy ; 
he  drove  home  his  arguments  and  never  was  misunderstood. 
In  many  of  his  more  carefully  prepared  addresses  are  to  be 
found  passages  of  impressive  eloquence,  touched  with  imagi 
nation  and  instinct  with  grace  and  feeling. 

He  had  a  large  capacity  for  administration,  clearness  of 
vision,  promptness  in  decision,  and  a  thorough  apprehension 
of  what  constituted  efficient  organization.  All  the  vast 
and  varied  work  which  he  accomplished  could  not  have  been 
done  unless  he  had  had  most  exceptional  natural  abilities, 
but  behind  them,  most  important  of  all,  was  the  driving 
force  of  an  intense  energy  and  the  ever-present  belief  that  a 


372  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

man  could  do  what  he  willed  to  do.  As  he  made  himself 
an  athlete,  a  horseman,  a  good  shot,  a  bold  explorer,  so 
he  made  himself  an  exceptionally  successful  writer  and 
speaker.  Only  a  most  abnormal  energy  would  have  enabled 
him  to  enter  and  conquer  in  so  many  fields  of  intellectual 
achievement.  But  something  more  than  energy  and  de 
termination  is  needed  for  the  largest  success,  especially  in 
the  world's  high  places.  The  first  requisite  of  leadership 
is  ability  to  lead,  and  that  ability  Theodore  Roosevelt  pos 
sessed  in  full  measure.  Whether  in  a  game  or  in  the  hunt 
ing  field,  in  a  fight  or  in  politics,  he  sought  the  front,  where, 
as  Webster  once  remarked,  there  is  always  plenty  of  room 
for  those  who  can  get  there.  His  instinct  was  always  to 
say  "come"  rather  than  "go,"  and  he  had  the  talent  to 
command.  i 

His  also  was  the  rare  gift  of  arresting  attention  sharply 
and  suddenly,  a  very  precious  attribute,  and  one  easier  to 
illustrate  than  to  describe.  This  arresting  power  is  like 
a  common  experience,  which  we  have  all  had  on  entering 
a  picture  gallery,  of  seeing  at  once  and  before  all  others  a 
single  picture  among  the  many  on  the  walls.  For  a  moment 
you  see  nothing  else,  although  you  may  be  surrounded  with 
masterpieces.  In  that  particular  picture  lurks  a  strange, 
capturing,  gripping  fascination  as  impalpable  as  it  is  unmis 
takable.  Roosevelt  had  this  same  arresting,  fascinating 
quality.  Whether  in  the  Legislature  at  Albany,  the  Civil 
Service  Commission  at  Washington,  or  the  police  commission 
in  New  York,  whether  in  the  Spanish  War  or  on  the  plains 
among  the  cowboys,  he  was  always  vivid,  at  times  startling, 
never  to  be  overlooked.  Nor  did  this  power  stop  here.  He 
not  only  without  effort  or  intention  drew  the  eager  atten 
tion  of  the  people  to  himself,  he  could  also  engage  and 
fix  their  thoughts  upon  anything  which  happened  to  inter 
est  him.  It  might  be  a  man  or  a  book,  reformed  spelling 
or  some  large  historical  question,  his  traveling  library  or 
the  military  preparation  of  the  United  States,  he  had  but 
to  say,  "See  how  interesting,  how  important,  is  this  man 
or  this  event,"  and  thousands,  even  millions,  of  people  would 
reply,  "We  never  thought  of  this  before,  but  it  certainly  is 
one  of  the  most  interesting,  most  absorbing  things  in  the 
world."  He  touched  a  subject,  and  it  suddenly  began  to 
glc^v  as  when  the  high-power  electric  current  touches  the 
metal  and  the  white  light  starts  forth  and  dazzles  the  on- 


MEMORIAL    ORATION  373 

looking  eyes.  We  know  the  air  played  by  the  Pied  Piper 
of  Hamelin  no  better  than  we  know  why  Theodore  Roose 
velt  thus  drew  the  interest  of  men  after  him.  We  only 
know  they  followed  wherever  his  insatiable  activity  of  mind 
invited  them. 

Men  follow  also  most  readily  a  leader  who  is  always  there 
before  them,  clearly  visible  and  just  where  they  expect  him. 
They  are  especially  eager  to  go  forward  with  a  man  who 
never  sounds  a  retreat.  Roosevelt  was  always  advancing, 
always  struggling  to  make  things  better,  to  carry  some 
much-needed  reform,  and  help  humanity  to  a  larger  chance, 
to  a  fairer  condition,  to  a  happier  life.  Moreover,  he 
looked  always  for  an  ethical  question.  He  was  at  his  best 
when  he  was  fighting  the  battle  of  right  against  wrong. 
He  thought  soundly  and  wisely  upon  questions  of  expedi 
ency  or  of  political  economy,  but  they  did  not  rouse  him 
or  bring  him  the  absorbed  interest  of  the  eternal  conflict 
between  good  and  evil.  Yet  he  was  never  impractical,  never 
blinded  by  counsels  of  perfection,  never  seeking  to  make 
the  better  the  enemy  of  the  good.  He  wished  to  get  the  best, 
but  he  would  strive  for  all  that  was  possible  even  if  it 
fell  short  of  the  highest  at  which  he  aimed.  He  studied  the 
lessons  of  history,  and  did  not  think  the  past  bad  simply 
because  it  was  the  past,  or  the  new  good  solely  because  it 
was  new.  He  sought  to  try  all  questions  on  their  intrinsic 
merits,  and  that  was  why  he  succeeding  in  advancing,  in 
making  government  and  society  better,  where  others  who 
would  be  content  with  nothing  less  than  an  abstract  perfec 
tion,  failed.  He  would  never  compromise  a  principle,  but  he 
was  eminently  tolerant  of  honest  differences  of  opinion.  He 
never  hesitated  to  give  generous  credit  where  credit  seemed 
due,  whether  to  friend  or  opponent,  and  in  this  way  he 
gathered  recruits  and  yet  never  lost  adherents. 

The  criticism  most  commonly  made  upon  Theodore  Roose 
velt  was  that  he  was  impulsive  and  impetuous;  that  he 
acted  without  thinking.  He  would  have  been  the  last  to 
claim  infallibility.  His  head  did  not  turn  when  fame  came 
to  him  and  choruses  of  admiration  sounded  in  his  ears,  for 
he  was  neither  vain  nor  credulous.  He  knew  that  he  made 
mistakes,  and  never  hesitated  to  admit  them  to  be  mistakes 
and  to  correct  them  or  put  them  behind  him  when  satisfied 
that  they  were  such.  But  he  wasted  no  time  in  mourning, 
explaining,  or  vainly  regretting  them.  It  is  also  true  that 


374  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

the  middle  way  did  not  attract  him.  He  was  apt  to  go  far, 
both  in  praise  and  censure,  although  nobody  could  analyze 
qualities  and  balance  them  justly  in  judging  men  better 
than  he.  He  felt  strongly,  and  as  he  had  no  concealments 
of  any  kind,  he  expressed  himself  in  like  manner.  But  ve 
hemence  is  not  violence,  nor  is  earnestness  anger,  which 
a  very  wise  man  defined  as  a  brief  madness.  It  was  all 
according  to  his  nature,  just  as  his  eager  cordiality  in  meet 
ing  men  and  women,  his  keen  interest  in  other  people's  care 
or  joys,  was  not  assumed,  as  some  persons  thought  who  did 
not  know  him.  It  was  all  profoundly  natural,  it  was  all 
real,  and  in  that  way  and  in  no  other  was  he  able  to  meet 
and  greet  his  fellowmen.  He  spoke  out  with  the  most 
Unrestrained  frankness  at  all  times  and  in  all  companies. 
Not  a  day  passed  in  the  Presidency  when  he  was  not  guilty 
of  what  the  trained  diplomatist  would  call  indiscretions. 
But  the  frankness  had  its  own  reward.  There  never  was  a 
President  whose  confidence  was  so  respected  or  with  whom 
the  barriers  of  honor  which  surround  private  conversation 
were  more  scrupulously  observed.  At  the  same  time,  when 
the  public  interest  required,  no  man  could  be  more  wisely 
reticent.  He  was  apt,  it  is  true,  to  act  suddenly  and  de 
cisively,  but  it  was  a  complete  mistake  to  suppose  that  he 
therefore  acted  without  thought  or  merely  on  a  momentary 
Impulse.  When  he  had  made  up  his  mind  he  was  resolute 
and  unchanging,  but  he  made  up  his  mind  only  after  much 
reflection,  and  there  never  was  a  President  in  the  White 
House  who  consulted  not  only  friends  but  political  oppo 
nents  and  men  of  all  kinds  and  conditions  more  than  Theo 
dore  Roosevelt.  When  he  had  reached  his  conclusion  he 
acted  quickly  and  drove  hard  at  his  object,  and  this  it  was, 
probably,  which  gave  an  impression  that  he  acted  some 
times  hastily  and  thoughtlessly,  which  was  a  complete  mis 
apprehension  of  the  man.  His  action  was  emphatic,  but 
emphasis  implies  reflection  not  thoughtlessness.  One  can 
not  even  emphasize  a  word  without  a  process,  however 
slight,  of  mental  differentiation. 

The  feeling  that  he  was  impetuous  and  impulsive  was 
also  due  to  the  fact  that  in  a  sudden,  seemingly  unexpected 
crisis  he  would  act  with  great  rapidity.  This  happened 
when  he  had  been  for  weeks,  perhaps  for  months,  consider 
ing  what  he  should  do  if  such  a  crisis  arose.  He  always 
believed  that  one  of  the  most  important  elements  of  sue- 


MEMORIAL    ORATION  375 

cess,  whether  in  public  or  in  private  life,  was  to  know  what 
one  meant  to  do  under  given  circumstances.  If  he  saw  the 
possibility  of  perilous  questions  arising,  it  was  his  practice 
to  think  over  carefully  just  how  he  would  act  under  cer 
tain  contingencies.  Many  of  the  contingencies  never  arose. 
Now  and  then  a  contingency  became  an  actuality,  and  then 
he  was  ready.  He  knew  what  he  meant  to  do,  he  acted 
at  once,  and  some  critics  considered  him  impetuous,  im 
pulsive,  and,  therefore,  dangerous,  because  they  did  not 
know  that  he  had  thought  the  question  all  out  beforehand. 

Very  many  people,  powerful  elements  in  the  community, 
regarded  him  at  one  time  as  a  dangerous  radical,  bent 
upon  overthrowing*  all  the  safeguards  of  society  and  plan 
ning  to  tear  out.  the  foundations  of  an  ordered  liberty.  As 
a  matter  of  fact,  what  Theodore  Roosevelt  was  trying  to  do 
was  to  strengthen  American  society  and  American  Govern 
ment  by  demonstrating  to  the  American  people  that  he  was 
aiming  at  a  larger  economic  equality  and  a  more  generous 
industrial  opportunity  for  all  men,  and  that  any  combina 
tion  of  capital  or  of  business,  which  threatened  the  control 
of  the  government  by  the  people  who  made  it,  was  to  be 
curbed  and  resisted,  just  as  he  would  have  resisted  an 
enemy  who  tried  to  take  possession  of  the  city  of  Washing 
ton. 

He  had  no  hostility  to  a  man  because  he  had  been 
successful  in  business  or  because  he  had  accumulated  a  for 
tune.  If  the  man  had  been  honestly  successful  and  used  his 
fortune  wisely  and  beneficently,  he  was  regarded  by  Theo 
dore  Roosevelt  as  a  good  citizen.  The  vulgar  hatred  of 
wealth  found  no  place  in  his  heart.  He  had  but  one  stand 
ard,  one  test,  and  that  was  whether  a  man,  rich  or  poor, 
was  an  honest  man,  a  good  citizen,  and  a  good  American. 
He  tried  men,  whether  they  were  men  of  ''big  business" 
or  members  of  a  labor  union  by  their  deeds,  and  in  no  other 
way.  The  tyranny  of  anarchy  and  disorder,  such  as  is  now 
desolating  Russia,  was  as  hateful  to  him  as  any  other 
tyranny,  whether  it  came  from  an  autocratic  system  like 
that  of  Germany  or  from  the  misuse  of  organized  capital. 
Personally  he  believed  in  every  man  earning  his  own  liv 
ing,  and  he  earned  money  and  was  glad  to  do  so;  but  he 
had  no  desire  or  taste  for  making  money,  and  he  was  en 
tirely  indifferent  to  it.  The  simplest  of  men  in  his  own 
habits,  the  only  thing  he  really  would  have  liked  to  have 


376  THEODORE    ROOSEVELT 

done  with  ample  wealth  would  have  been  to  give  freely 
to  the  many  good  objects  which  continually  interested  him. 

Theodore  Roosevelt's  power,  however,  and  the  main  source 
of  all  his  achievement,  was  not  in  the  offices  which  he  held, 
for  those  offices  were  to  him  only  opportunities,  but  in  the 
extraordinary  hold  which  he  established  and  retained  over 
great  bodies  of  men.  He  had  the  largest  personal  follow 
ing  ever  attained  by  any  man  in  our  history.  I  do  not 
mean  by  this  the  following  which  comes  from  great  politi 
cal  office  or  from  party  candidacy.  There  have  been  many 
men  who  have  held  the  highest  offices  in  our  history  by 
the  votes  of  their  fellow  countrymen  who  have  never  had 
anything  more  than  a  very  small  personal  following.  By 
personal  following  is  meant  here  that  which  supports  and 
sustains  and  goes  with  a  man  simply  because  he  is  him 
self ;  a  following  which  does  not  care  whether  their  leader 
and  chief  is  in  office  or  out  of  office,  which  is  with  him  and 
behind  him  because  they,  one  and  all,  believe  in  him  and 
love  him  and  are  ready  to  stand  by  him  for  the  sole  and 
simple  reason  that  they  have  perfect  faith  that  he  will 
lead  them  where  they  wish  and  where  they  ought  to  go. 
This  following  Theodore  Roosevelt  had,  as  I  have  said,  in 
a  larger  degree  than  anyone  in  our  history,  and  the  fact 
that  he  had  it  and  what  he  did  with  it  for  the  welfare  of 
his  fellowmen  have  given  him  his  great  place  and  his 
lasting  fame. 

This  is  not  mere  assertion;  it  was  demonstrated,  as  I 
have  already  pointed  out,  by  the  vote  of  1912,  and  at  all 
times,  from  the  day  of  his  accession  to  the  Presidency  on 
ward,  there  were  millions  of  people  in  this  country  ready 
to  follow  Theodore  Roosevelt  and  vote  for  him,  or  do  any 
thing  else  that  he  wanted,  whenever  he  demanded  their  sup 
port  or  raised  his  standard.  It  was  this  great  mass  of  sup 
port  among  the  people,  and  which  probably  was  never  larger 
than  in  these  last  years,  that  gave  him  his  immense  influ 
ence  upon  public  opinion,  and  public  opinion  was  the  weapon 
which  he  used  to  carry  out  all  the  policies  which  he  wished 
to  bring  to  fulfillment  and  to  consolidate  all  the  achieve 
ments  upon  which  he  had  set  his  heart.  This  extraordinary 
popular  strength  was  not  given  to  him  solely  because  the 
people  knew  him  to  be  honest  and  brave,  because  they  were 
certain  that  physical  fear  was  an  emotion  unknown  to  him, 


MEMORIAL    ORATION  377 

and  that  his  moral  courage  equaled  the  physical.  It  was 
not  merely  because  they  thoroughly  believed  him  to  be  sin 
cere.  All  this  knowledge  and  belief,  of  course,  went  to 
making  his  popular  leadership  secure;  but  there  was  much 
more  in  it  than  that,  something  that  went  deeper,  basic  ele 
ments  which  were  not  upon  the  surface  which  were  due 
to  qualities  of  temperament  interwoven  with  his  very  being, 
inseparable  from  him  and  yet  subtle  rather  than  obvious 
in  their  effects. 

All  men  admire  courage,  and  that  he  possessed  in  the 
highest  degree.  But  he  had  also  something  larger  and 
rarer  than  courage,  in  the  ordinary  acceptation  of  the  word. 
When  an  assassin  shot  him  at  Milwaukee  he  was  severely 
wounded;  how  severely  he  could  not  tell,  but  it  might  well 
have  been  mortal.  He  went  on  to  the  great  meeting  await 
ing  him  and  there,  bleeding,  suffering,  ignorant  of  his  fate, 
but  still  unconquered,  made  his  speech  and  went  from  the 
stage  to  the  hospital.  What  bore  him  up  was  the  dauntless 
spirit  which  could  rise  victorious  over  pain  and  darkness 
and  the  unknown  and  meet  the  duty  of  the  hour  as  if  all 
were  well.  A  spirit  like  this  awakens  in  all  men  more  than 
admiration,  it  kindles  affection  and  appeals  to  every  gen 
erous  impulse. 

Very  different,  but  equally  compelling,  was  another  qual 
ity.  There  is  nothing  in  human  beings  at  once  so  sane 
and  so  sympathetic  as  a  sense  of  humor.  This  great  gift 
the  good  fairies  conferred  upon  Theodore  Roosevelt  at  his 
birth  in  unstinted  measure.  No  man  ever  had  a  more 
abundant  sense  of  humor — joyous,  irrepressible  humor — and 
it  never  deserted  him.  Even  at  the  most  serious  and  even 
perilous  moments  if  there  was  a  gleam  of  humor  anywhere 
he  saw  it  and  rejoiced  and  helped  himself  with  it  over  the 
rough  places  and  in  the  dark  hour.  He  loved  fun,  loved 
to  joke  and  chaff,  and,  what  is  more  uncommon,  greatly  en 
joyed  being  chaffed  himself.  His  ready  smile  and  con 
tagious  laugh  made  countless  friends  and  saved  him  from 
many  an  enmity.  Even  more  generally  effective  than  his 
humor,  and  yet  allied  to  it,  was  the  universal  knowledge 
that  Roosevelt  had  no  secrets  from  the  American  people. 

Yet  another  quality — perhaps  the  most  engaging  of  all — 
was  his  homely,  generous  humanity  which  enabled  him  to 
speak  directly  to  the  primitive  instincts  of  man. 


378  THEODOKE   ROOSEVELT 

He  dwelt  with  the  tribes  of  the  marsh  and  moor, 

He  sate  at  the  board  of  kings ; 
He  tasted  the  toil  of  the  burdened  slave 

And  the  joy  that  triumph  brings. 
But  whether  to  jungle  or  palace  hall 

Or  white-walled  tent  he  came, 
He  was  brother  to  king  and  soldier  and  slave 

His  welcome  was  the  same. 

He  was  very  human  and  intensely  American,  and  this 
knit  a  bond  between  him  and  the  American  people  which 
nothing  could  ever  break.  And  then  he  had  yet  one  more 
attraction,  not  so  impressive,  perhaps,  as  the  others,  but 
none  the  less  very  important  and  very  captivating.  He 
never  by  any  chance  bored  the  American  people.  They 
might  laugh  at  him  or  laugh  with  him,  they  might  like 
what  he  said  or  dislike  it,  they  might  agree  with  him  or 
disagree  with  him,  but  they  were  never  wearied  of  him,  and 
he  never  failed  to  interest  them.  He  was  never  heavy, 
laborious,  or  dull.  If  he  had  made  any  effort  to  be  always 
interesting  and  entertaining  he  would  have  failed  and  been 
tiresome.  He  was  unfailingly  attractive,  because  he  was 
always  perfectly  natural  and  his  own  unconscious  self.  And 
so  all  these  things  combined  to  give  him  his  hold  upon  the 
American  people,  not  only  upon  their  minds,  but  upon  their 
hearts  and  their  instincts,  which  nothing  could  ever  weaken, 
and  which  made  him  one  of  the  most  remarkable,  as  he  was 
one  of  the  strongest,  characters  that  the  history  of  popular 
government  can  show.  He  was  also — and  this  is  very  re 
vealing  and  explanatory,  too,  of  his  vast  popularity — a  man 
of  ideals.  He  did  not  expose  them  daily  on  the  roadside 
with  language  fluttering  about  them  like  the  Thibetan  who 
ties  his  slip  of  paper  to  the  prayer  wheel  whirling  in  the 
wind.  He  kept  his  ideals  to  himself  until  the  hour  of  fulfill 
ment  arrived.  Some  of  them  were  the  dreams  of  boyhood, 
from  which  he  never  departed,  and  which  I  have  seen  him 
carry  out  shyly  and  yet  thoroughly  and  with  intense  per 
sonal  satisfaction. 

He  had  a  touch  of  the  knight  errant  in  his  daily  life, 
although  he  would  never  have  admitted  it ;  but  it  was  there. 
It  was  not  visible  in  the  medieval  form  of  shining  armor 
and  dazzling  tournaments,  but  in  the  never-ceasing  effort 
to  help  the  poor  and  the  oppressed,  to  defend  and  protect 


MEMORIAL    ORATION  379 

women  and  children,  to  right  the  wronged  and  succor  the 
downtrodden.  Passing  by  on  the  other  side  was  not  a  mode 
of  travel  through  life  ever  possible  to  him ;  and  yet  he  was 
as  far  distant  from  the  professional  philanthropist  as  could 
well  be  imagined,  for  all  he  tried  to  do  to  help  his  fellow 
men  he  regarded  as  part  of  the  day's  work  to  be  done  and 
not  talked  about.  No  man  ever  prized  sentiment  or  hated 
sentimentality  more  than  he.  He  preached  unceasingly  the 
familiar  morals  which  lie  at  the  bottom  of  both  family  and 
public  life.  The  blood  of  some  ancestral  Scotch  covenanter 
or  of  some  Dutch  reformed  preacher  facing  the  tyranny  of 
Philip  of  Spain  was  in  his  veins,  and  with  his  large  oppor 
tunities  and  his  vast  audiences  he  was  always  ready  to 
appeal  for  justice  and  righteousness.  But  his  own  personal 
ideals  he  never  attempted  to  thrust  upon  the  world  until 
the  day  came  when  they  were  to  be  translated  into  reali 
ties  of  action. 

When  the  future  historian  traces  Theodore  "Roosevelt's 
extraordinary  career  he  will  find  those  embodied  ideals 
planted  like  milestones  along  the  road  over  which  he 
marched.  They  never  left  him.  His  ideal  of  public  service 
was  to  be  found  in  his  life,  and  as  his  life  drew  to  its  close 
he  had  to  meet  his  ideal  of  sacrifice  face  to  face.  All  his 
sons  went  from  him  to  the  war,  and  one  was  killed  upon 
the  field  of  honor.  Of  all  the  ideals  that  lift  men  up,  the 
hardest  to  fulfill  is  the  ideal  of  sacrifice.  Theodore  Roose 
velt  met  it  as  he  had  all  others  and  fulfilled  it  to  the  last 
jot  of  its  terrible  demands.  His  country  asked  the  sacri 
fice  and  he  gave  it  with  solemn  pride  and  uncomplaining 
lips. 

This  is  not  the  place  to  speak  of  his  private  life,  but 
within  that  sacred  circle  no  man  was  ever  more  blessed  in 
the  utter  devotion  of  a  noble  wife  and  the  passionate  love 
of  his  children.  The  absolute  purity  and  beauty  of  his 
family  life  tell  us  why  the  pride  and  interest  which  his 
fellow  countrymen  felt  in  him  were  always  touched  with 
the  warm  light  of  love.  In  the  home  so  dear  to  him,  in  his 
sleep,  death  came,  and — 

So  Valiant-for-Truth  passed  over  and  all  the  trumpets 
sounded  for  him  on  the  other  side. 


ADDRESS  BY  CHARLES  E.  HUGHES 


CHAPTER  XXVIII 
ADDRESS  BY  CHARLES  E.  HUGHES 

ONE  of  the  most  important  memorial  services 
in  America  was  the  one  held  in  New  York, 
February  9th,  at  the  Union  League  Club,  and 
the   address   was   made   by   Honorable    Charles    E. 
Hughes.     It  was  statesmanlike  and  masterful.     By 
the  courtesy  of  the  Republican  Club  we  take  copious 
extracts  from  the  address  for  this  chapter.    The  orator 
said: 

The  heroes  of  democracy  are  the  springs  of  its  life;  its 
sources  of  vigor  and  confidence.  We  increasingly  realize  in 
the  midst  of  our  abounding  activities,  that  it  is  the  man  and 
not  the  mechanism  that  counts,  and  that  the  hosts  of  the 
industrious,  the  efficient,  and  the  just  must  depend  for  their 
triumphs  on  the  worth  and  strength  of  leadership.  We  are 
not  paying  tribute  to  the  distinction  conferred  by  office,  even 
the  highest  office;  nor  are  we  commemorating  mere  achieve 
ments  although  extraordinary  and  varied.  Our  tribute  is  of 
unstinted  admiration  and  deep  affection  for  one  who  was 
great  in  office,  but  even  greater  out  of  office,  whose  unfail 
ing  faith,  courage  and  energy  caused  personality  to  eclipse 
achievement;  whose  constant  industry  and  self-discipline, 
whose  sound  democratic  instinct,  elemental  virtues  and 
wholesome  living,  whose  restless,  alert  and  indomitable 
spirit,  impatient  at  all  obstacles,  made  him  more  than  any 
other  the  representative  of  free  America — the  typical  Amer 
ican  not  only  of  the  nineteenth  century,  but  of  the  twen- 
383 


384=  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

tieth — the  embodiment  of  patriotic  ardor,  of  lofty  ideals,  of 
practical  sense  and  invincible  determination.  Deeply  con 
scious  of  the  irreparable  loss  of  his  immediate  leadership, 
we  turn  to  consider  the  fructifying  influence  of  a  life  which 
has  no  parallel  in  our  annals.  "He  is  great,"  says  Emer 
son,  "who  is  what  he  is  from  nature,  and  who  never  re 
minds  us  of  others." 

The  life  of  Theodore  Roosevelt  presents  strange  contrasts 
in  its  constant  escape  from  the  limitations  of  environment 
He  was  city  bred,  but  he  became  a  naturalist  of  eminence 
and  a  hunter  of  no  mean  prowess.  He  was  reared  in  the 
most  exclusive  circles  of  the  East,  but  he  breathed  the  free 
spirit  of  the  Western  plains.  He  was  educated  in  private 
schools,  and  his  early  training  was  amid  cultural  surround 
ings  tending  to  separate  him  from  the  masses,  but  he  was 
closer  to  the  thought  of  the  plain  people  than  any  leader 
in  America.  As  a  boy,  he  was  of  delicate  physique,  but 
by  the  careful  discipline  of  years  he  made  himself  an 
athlete.  He  spent  about  two-thirds  of  his  life  in  public 
office,  but  never  was  any  one  less  official  or  less  mastered 
by  routine.  He  was  engrossed  with  the  grave  practical 
concerns  of  his  time,  but  he  was  one  of  its  most  prolific 
authors.  He  was  in  politics  from  the  beginning  of  his  ca 
reer,  but  he  was  a  master  and  not  a  servant  of  the  politi 
cal  order.  In  every  activity,  the  spirit  of 'Theodore  Roose 
velt  escaped  the  limitations  of  all  associations  and  tradi 
tions  and  emerged  dominating,  triumphant,  and  he  thus  rep 
resents  to  us  neither  locality  nor  vocation — not  the  author, 
or  the  traveler,  or  the  naturalist,  not  the  political  leader 
or  the  officer,  not  even  the  statesman  or  the  President,  but 
the  man — who  in  his  human  worth  and  virile  personality 
transcended  all  distinctions  of  place  and  circumstance, 
whose  defects  were  only  the  shadows  which  made  his  vir 
tues  stand  out  the  more  impressively,  and  whose  memory 
will  ever  remain  an  abiding  inspiration. 

It  would  be  impossible  on  this  occasion  even  briefly  to 
sketch  the  seven  years  and  a  half  of  President  Roosevelt's 
administration,  still  less  to  do  justice  to  his  achievements. 
There  were  certain  distinctive  features,  however,  which  may 
be  noted.  He  surrounded  himself  with  the  strongest  men 
and  delighted  in  their  friendship  and  counsel.  He  found  no 
sacrifice  of  leadership  in  the  intimate  association  with  the 
best  minds  of  his  day.  He  nourished  his  strength  by  such 


CHARLES    E.    HUGHES  385 

intimacy  and,  with  all  his  eagerness  and  readiness,  he  wel 
comed  the  best  advice  he  could  get.  It  was  characteristic 
of  Roosevelt  that  his  friends  in  every  department  of  activ 
ity  were  the  ablest,  the  keenest,  the  most  expert,  the  most 
vital.  To  him  democracy  did  not  mean  the  triumph  of  the 
common-place  or  the  rule  of  ignorance,  but  the  best  talent 
engaged  in  the  service  of  all.  Hay,  Root,  Taft  and  Knox 
gave  high  distinction  to  his  Cabinet,  while  in  every  depart 
ment  he  was  constantly  seeking  to  maintain  enlightened 
policies  and  the  highest  efficiency. 

In  international  affairs,  with  such  Secretaries  as  Hay  and 
Root,  there  was  constantly  displayed  a  rare  sagacity  and  the 
nation  enjoyed  a  greatly  enhanced  prestige.  President  Roose 
velt  knew  how  to  avoid  difficulties  as  well  as  to  overcome 
them,  and  the  archives  of  diplomatic  correspondence,  and 
his  personal  notes  to  our  Ambassadors,  will  in  time  disclose 
the  extraordinary  influence  which  he  helpfully  exerted. 
Every  foreign  Chancellery  knew  that  he  meant  what  he 
said,  and  that  his  words  were  important  because  they  were 
the  sure  harbinger  of  deeds.  With  such  a  man,  there  was 
no  doubt  as  to  action  and  no  temptation  to  carry  things  too 
far.  The  "big  stick"  was  an  assurance  of  peace.  He  dared, 
but  not  recklessly.  And  he  always  had  the  gift  of  humor. 
The  story  is  told  that  when  one  expressed  the  hope  that 
he  would  not  embroil  us  in  any  foreign  war,  he  said,  "What, 
a  war?  With  me  cooped  up  in  the  White  House?  Never, 
gentlemen,  never." 

The  first  case  before  the  Hague  Court  was  brought  before 
it  through  his  instrumentality,  and  this  set  the  precedent 
for  many  others.  The  Alaska  Boundary  question  was 
settled  through  the  decision  of  a  Joint  Commission,  remov 
ing,  as  he  has  well  said,  "the  last  obstacle  to  absolute  agree 
ment  between  the  two  peoples."  But  this  great  service  to 
the  cause  of  peace  was  in  his  contribution  to  the  settle 
ment  of  the  Russo-Japanese  war  in  1905.  He  conducted  the 
preliminaries  with  consummate  skill.  On  his  invitation,  the 
delegations  of  the  two  nations  met  at  Portsmouth,  New 
Hampshire.  Neither  side  got  all  it  wanted;  he  felt  that 
each  side  had  as  regards  himself  a  feeling  of  injury,  but 
this,  as  he  told  us,  he  did  not  resent.  In  appreciation  of 
this  service,  he  was  awarded  the  Nobel  Peace  Prize. 

He  also  acted  on  his  own  responsibility  in  sending  the 
fleet  around  the  world.  He  knew  that  "neither  the  English 


386  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

nor  the  German  authorities  believed  that  it  was  possible 
to  take  a  fleet  of  great  battleships  around  the  world."  But 
his  prime  purpose  was  "to  impress  the  American  people,  and 
this  purpose  was  fully  achieved."  It  established  the  popular 
belief  in  the  American  Navy,  and  if  in  the  world  war  our 
navy  has  demonstrated  an  efficiency  unsurpassed,  let  us 
not  forget — while  due,  credit  is  withheld  from  none — that 
naval  efficiency  is  not  produced  in  a  year  and  that  the  feat 
of  the  past  two  years,  which  has  been  in  large  part  the 
essential  basis  of  the  complete  victory  of  the  cause  of  civili 
zation,  is  directly  due  to  the  foresight  and  intelligent 
vigilance  of  Theodore  Roosevelt. 

When  we  turn  to  domestic  affairs,  we  realize  that  Presi 
dent  Roosevelt  came  to  national  leadership  at  a  time  which 
needed  his  championship  of  the  common  welfare.  It  is  diffi 
cult  now  to  think  of  the  day  when  lawyers  of  ability  and 
distinction  were  asserting  the  unconstitutionality  of  the 
exercise  by  Congress,  through  an  appropriate  agency,  of  the 
rate  making  power  in  its  regulation  of  interstate  commerce. 
The  conclusions  then  reached  after  strenuous  contests,  are 
now  the  most  familiar  postulates.  For  President  Roose 
velt,  the  commerce  power — till  then  but  little  used — was  the 
instrumentality  of  an  aroused  opinion  determined  that  the 
Republic  should  not  be  the  victim  of  the  opportunities  it 
had  created,  and  that  greed,  defying  all  control,  should  not 
make  mockery  of  justice.  The  record  of  accomplishment 
is  impressive — especially  as  so  much  WPS  essayed  in  a  com 
paratively  new  field.  The  Hepburn  bill  as  to  railroad  rates, 
the  Pure  Food  bill,  -the  Meat  Inspection  bill,  the  Employers' 
Liability  bill,  the  establishment  of  the  Bureau  of  Corpora 
tions;  his  trust  prosecutions,  illustrate  his  efforts  for  the 
public  welfare  against  what  he  regarded  as  the  serious  evils 
in  our  nationl  life.  The  public  had  found  an  undaunted 
champion,  and  his  blows  in  their  interest  fell  thick  and  fast. 

But  he  did  not  assail  the  foundations  of  society.  He  sought 
to  purge,  not  to  destroy ;  to  secure  the  essential  conditions 
of  progress,  not  to  impair  stability.  It  was  never  -his  no 
tion  that  he  must  burn  down  the  house  to  get  rid  of  the 
rats.  He  always  sought  what  he  believed  to  be  the  "just 
middle."  It  was  his  endeavor  to  cut  out  the  abuses  of 
property  and  to  hold  the  scales  even  between  "corrupt  and 
unscrupulous  demagogues  and  corrupt  and  unscrupulous  re 
actionaries."  "To  play  the  demagogue  for  purposes  of  self 


CHAKLES   E.   HUGHES  387 

Interest,"  said  he,  was  "a  cardinal  sin  against  the  people  in 
a  democracy." 

In  the  effort  to  secure  a  just  solution  of  the  problems 
of  labor,  he  was  indefatigable.  To  this  end  he  used  all  his 
authority,  legal  and  moral.  It  was  the  moral  authority  of 
his  office  that  he  exerted  in  the  settlement  of  the  anthracite 
coal  strike  in  1902.  He  was  confronted,  as  Judge  Gray  said, 
with  a  crisis  more  grave  and  threatening  than  any  that  had 
occurred  since  the  Civil  War.  Through  the  moral  coercion 
of  public  opinion,  directed  by  the  President,  an  arbitra 
tion  was  agreed  to  and  the  dangers  were  averted.  The 
nation  never  forgot  this  service  or  the  way  in  which  it 
was  rendered.  It  was  a  service  which  only  a  man  of  rare 
courage  and  initiative  could  have  performed.  And  for  it, 
as  Judge  Gray  said,  President  Eoosevelt  deserved  unstinted 
praise. 

In  his  relation  to  labor,  he  was  actuated  by  the  profound 
belief  that  we  need  never  suffer  from  a  class  war,  that  "em 
ployers  and  employees  have  overwhelming  interests  in  com 
mon  both  as  partners  in  industry  and  as  citizens  of  the  Re 
public,  and,  that  when  these  interests  are  apart,  they  can 
be  adjusted  by  so  altering  our  laws  and  their  interpreta 
tion  as  to  secure  to  all  members  of  the  community  social 
and  industrial  justice."  .But  he  realized  that  In  order  that 
prosperity  be  passed  around,  it  is  necessary  that  "the  pros 
perity  shall  exist,"  and  that  in  order  that  labor  shall  receive 
its  fair  share  in  the  division  of  rewards,  it  is  necessary 
"that  there  shall  be  rewards  to  divide." 

Of  first  importance,  in  his  judgment,  was  the  conserva. 
tion  of  our  natural  resources,  which  he  emphasized  by  call 
ing  the  conference  of  State  Governors  in  May,  1908.  The 
administration  of  the  national  forests,  the  conservation  of 
mines,  the  improvement  of  waterways,  and  the  develop 
ment  of  water  power — all  were,  subjects  on  which  he  thought 
deeply  and  to  which  he  constantly  directed  public  attention 
for  the  purpose  of  promoting  the  common  welfare  and  of 
avoiding  the  selfish  exploitation  of  the  nation's  riches. 

He  thrived  on  the  hard  work  of  the  Presidency  and  left 
office  in  the  full  tide  of  health  and  energy.  His  relaxation 
was  a  long  hunting  trip  in  Africa,  and  a  tour  of  Europe  in 
which  He  made  numerous  addresses  and  received  the  most 
distinguished  honors.  One  of  our  Ambassadors,  who  was 
with  him  on  the  occasion  of  King  Edward's  funeral,  has 


388  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

said  that  to  see  Theodore  Roosevelt,  the  adequate  democrat, 
furnishing  the  centre  of  interest  as  he  discoursed  in  his  free 
and  entertaining  manner  to  a  delighted  group  of  Kings,  was 
to  get  a  new  vision  of  the  essential  worth  of  manhood  which 
needed  no  trappings  to  establish  its  dignity. 

On  his  return  to  the  United  States,  he  soon  resumed  the 
political  activity  which  he  could  no  more  dispense  with 
than  he  could  forego  his  daily  food.  Those  who  supposed 
that  he  could  have  remained  out  of  politics  must  construct 
another  Roosevelt  to  fit  their  fancy.  To  the  true  Roosevelt, 
the  earnest  expression  of  political  views,  and  the  endeavor 
to  put  them  into  effect,  were  inevitable.  One  occasion  or 
another  might  be  presented,  but  there  could  be  no  question 
that  in  response  to  the  insistent  demand  of  his  own  nature, 
no  less  than  in  answer  to  the  call  of  others,  he  would  be 
found  in  the  political  arena. 

Of  the  bitterness  and  animosities  that  were  engendered, 
of  the  divison  that  resulted,  of  the  party  catastrophe  which 
followed,  there  is  no  need  now  to  speak.  We  are  deeply 
grateful  that  this  period  of  the  estrangement  of  old  friends, 
of  misunderstanding  and  strife,  came  to  an  end,  and  that  in 
the  commdb  cause  of  liberty,  which  demanded  the  full 
strength  of  the  nation,  a  common  patriotic  endeavor  re 
stored  the  old-time  amity,  the  wounds  were  healed,  the  party 
integrity  restored,  the  friendships  renewed,  and  the  Republi 
can  Party  once  more  rejoiced  in  the  leadership  of  Theodore 
Roosevelt. 

After  the  labors  of  campaigns  a  trip  of  exploration  was 
taken  in  South  America  in  the  early  part  of  1914.  The 
spirit  of  adventure  was  as  indomitable  as  ever.  The  fires 
of  youth  were  unquenched.  But  in  his  adventures,  Roose 
velt  was  always  seeking  not  mere  pleasure,  but  to  add  to 
the  sum  of  knowledge.  His  achievements  as  an  explorer 
were  indubitable,  but  he  did  not  seek  to  magnify  them.  As 
Steffansson  tells  us,  Roosevelt  thus  expressed  himself  in  a 
letter  written  shortly  before  his  death :  "I  do  not  make  any 
claim  to  the  front  rank  among  explorers  .  .  .  but  I  do 
think  that  I  can  reasonably  maintain  that  compared  with 
other  Presidents,  Princes  and  Prime  Ministers,  I  have  done 
an  unusual  amount  of  useful  work." 

But  this  trip  of  exploration,  useful  as  it  was  from  a  scien 
tific  point  of  view,  was  a  fateful  trip  for  the  explorer.  He 


CHARLES   E.   HUGHES  389 

never  fully  recovered  from  the  fever  with  which  he  was 
then  attacked,  and  he  was  unable  to  free  his  system  of  the 
seeds  of  disease. 

Soon  after  his  return  to  this  country,  the  great  war 
broke  out.  He  was  one  of  the  first  to  appreciate  its  sig 
nificance  and  our  duty.  His  soul  revolted  at  the  wrongs  of 
Belgium,  and  he  poured  out  the  vials  of.  his  scorn  upon  the 
neutrality  which  ignored  the  call  of  humanity  and  sacri 
ficed  the  self-respect  of  the  American  Republic.  When  the 
Lusitania  was  sunk,  in  May,  1915,  he*  demanded  action  with 
"immediate  decision  and  vigor."  "Centuries  have  passed," 
said  he,  "since  any  war  vessel  of  a  civilized  power  has 
shown  such  ruthless  brutality  toward  non-combatants,  and 
especially  toward  women  and  children."  None  of  the  "old- 
time  pirates"  had  "committed  murder  on  so  vast  a  scale." 
"We  earn,  as  a  nation,"  he  cried,  "measureless  scorn  and 
contempt  if  we  -follow  the  lead  of  those  who  exalt  peace 
above  righteousness,  if  we  heed  the  voices  of  those  feeble 
folk  who  bleat  to  high  heaven  that  there  is  peace,  when 
there  is  no  peace.  For  many  months  our  government  has 
preserved  between  right  and  wrong  a  neutrality  which 
would  have  excited  the  tremulous  admiration  of  Pontius 
Pilate — the  arch-typical  neutral  of  all  times."  Theodore 
Roosevelt,  to  his  lasting  honor  he  it  said,  was  right,  and  had 
his  voice  prevailed  and  had  the  country  earlier  shaken  off 
its  lethargy,  millions  of  lives  and  countless  treasure  might' 
have  been  spared.  Better  late  than  never,  but  it  is  costly 
to  be  late. 

Of  inestimable  value  to  his  country  had  been  his  service 
in  office,  but  now — a  private  citizen — he  was  to  perform  an 
even  greater  service.  To  a  hesitant  administration,  and  to 
a  people  lulled  into  a  false  security  and  lending  ear  to  an 
unworthy  pacifism,  he  preached  the  gospel  of  preparedness. 
Throughout  the  country,  journeyed  this  courageous  apostle 
of  right-thinking,  having  no  credentials  but  those  of  his 
own  conscience  and  patriotism,  and  by  his  pitiless  invective 
he  literally  compelled  action.  Back  of  all  that  was  done 
was  the  pressure  of  the  demand  of  Roosevelt.  "For  eighteen 
months,"  said  he  in  the  early  part  of  1916,  "with  this  world- 
cyclone  before  our  eyes,  we  as  a  nation  have  sat  supine 
without  preparing  in  any  shape  or  way.  It  is  an  actual 
fact  that  there  has  not  been  one  soldier,  one  rifle,  one  gun, 
one  boat,  added  to  the  American  Army  or  Navy  so  far, 


390  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

because  of  anything  that  has  occurred  in  this  war,  and  not 
the  slightest  step  has  yet  been  taken  looking  to  the  neces 
sary  preparedness.  Such  national  short-sightedness,  such 
national  folly,  is  almost  inconceivable."  He  denounced  the 
proposed  program  as  a  make-believe  program,  as  one  en 
tirely  inadequate  to  our  needs.  "It  is,"  he  said,  "a  proposal 
not  to  do  something  effective  immediately,  but  to  do  some 
thing  entirely  ineffective  immediately  and  to  trust  that  our 
lack  will  be  made  good  in  succeeding  years." 

He  also  demanded  spiritual  preparedness  in  a  deepening 
sense  of  unity.  He  preached  the  gospel  of  undiluted  and  un 
hyphenated  Americanism.  "The  foreign-born  population 
of  this  country,"  said  he,  "must  be  an  Americanized  popu 
lation.  No  other  kind  can  fight  the  battles  of  America 
either  in  war  or  peace.  It  must  talk  the  language  of  its 
native  born  fellow  citizens,  it  must  possess  American  citi 
zenship  and  American  ideals."  "There  is  no  such  a  thing 
as  a  hyphenated  American  who  is  a  good  American.  The 
only  man  who  is  a  good  American  is  the  man  who  is  an 
American  and  nothing  else."  "I,"  he  said,  "I  am  straight 
United  States." 

And  when  finally  we  could  stand  no  longer  the  brutal 
assaults  of  Germany  and  declared  that  a  state  of  war  ex 
isted,  he  felt  that  his  place  was  in  that  holiest  of  wars,  and 
he  was  ready  to  die  fighting  for  his  country.  When  he  asked 
to  be  allowed  to  go  to  France,  he  had  no  thought  of  a  re 
turn  in  glory.  I  well  remember  the  night,  shortly  after 
the  declaration  of  war,  when  at  the  close  of  a  meeting  at 
the  Union  League  Club,  he  talked  to  a  little  company  of 
his  heart's  wish.  "I  sha\l  not  return,"  he  said,  "my  sons 
may  not  return,  my  grandchildren  may  be  left  alone"— 
and  no  one  could  doubt  that  he  meant  what  he  said.  But 
the  greatest  desire  of  his  life  was  denied  him.  We  can 
but  faintly  imagine  the  measure  of  his  disappointment,  but 
we  may  conjecture  that  it  had  no  small  share  in  hasten 
ing  the  final  break-down.  His  country  at  war,  and  Roose 
velt  at  home!  That  was  the  cruelest  blow  that  fate  could 
deal  him. 

But  if  he  could  not  fight  for  liberty  and  humanity  on 
the  Western  Front,  he  could  fight  with  pen  and  voice  at 
home;  There  was  not  a  moment  lost.  With  increasing  vigor 
he  demanded  adequate  forces,  adequate  equipment,  speed 
and  efficiency.  His  lash  knew  no  mercy,  but  it  was  a  neces- 


CHARLES    E.   HUGHES  391 

sary  lash.  As  it  was,  we  were  just  in  time.  How  late  we 
should  have  been  had  it  not  been  for  Roosevelt,  God  only 
knows !  But  who  can  doubt  the  value  of  the  service  of  that 
insistent  demand  in  making  it  possible  that  we.  should  ar 
rive  at  the  front,  in  force,  in  time  to  make  the  last  great 
German  drive  a  failure?  He  quickened  the  national  con 
sciousness;  he  developed  the  sense  of  unity,  and  when  the 
country  awoke  he  was  the  natural  leader  of  an  aroused 
America.  His  priceless  service  at  home  made  all  the  world 
his  debtor.  If  America  by  its  aid  at  the  critical  moment 
made  victory  possible,  it  was  the  spur  of  Roosevelt  that 
assured  that  aid,  and  while  we  acclaim  the  splendid  service 
of  officers  and  men,  the  pride  of  -our  army  and  navy,  and  of 
the  host  of  willing  workers,  and  are  gratified  at  the  vast 
achievements  of  the  nation,  let  it  not  be  forgotten  that 
yonder  in  his  last  resting  place  in  Oyster  Bay  lies  our  great 
est  hero  of  the  war.  He  incarnated  the  spirit  of  America, 
and  when  he  passed  away,  and  controversy  was  no  more 
and  enemies  were  silenced,  the  country  with  one  voice  paid 
its  tribute  to  the  patriot  who,  without  office  or  commission, 
had  supplied  the  leadership  which  had  not  faltered  or  erred, 
and  had  fought  to  maintain  the  nation's  honor. 

It  is  with  pleasure  that  we  remember  the  family  life  of 
this  stout-hearted  American.  Worthy  in  public  life,  he  dig 
nified  the  American  home.  He  spoke  of  his  father  as 
the  best  man  he  had  ever  known,  and  the  spirit  of  his 
father's  house  blessed  his  own.  An  ideal  husband  and  father, 
his  home  was  the  beautiful  abode  of  all  that  was  worthy 
and  true.  He  transmitted  his  own  courage  to  his  four 
sons,  and  all  of  his  sons  won  distinction  at  the  front.  The 
last  sacrifice  for  his  country  which  his  father  longed  to 
make  in  the  battle  for  liberty  his  son  Quentin  did  make, 
and  in  his  heroic  death  achieved  an  imperishable  honor  of 
his  own. 

It  is  small  wonder  that  such  a  career  as  that  of  Theo 
dore  Roosevelt  has  a  lasting  fascination  for  young  men. 
There  was  nothing  sordid  or  commonplace  or  unclean  to 
mar  it.  His  courage,  steadfastness  and  faith,  his  deeds  of 
daring,  his  physical  prowess,  his  resourcefulness,  his  ex 
ploits  as  a  hunter  and  explorer,  his  intellectual  keenness, 
his  personal  charm,  and  his  dominating  patriotic  motive, 
make  their  irresistible  appeal,  and  in  the  shaping  of  the 


392  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

ideals  of  the  American  youth  for  generations  to  come  his 
most  important  service  is  yet  to  be  rendered. 

He  left  us  when  we  could  ill  afford  to  spare  him.  Against 
all  that  tended  to  destroy  our  government,  against  all  that 
is  sinister  and  corrupt,  against  tyranny  of  every  sort, 
against  the  exploitation  of  the  weak  and  all  injustice, 
against  class  hatred  and  class  pride,  against  the  enfeebling 
influence  of  pacifism,  against  the  impractical  schemes  of 
visionaries,  against  every  tendency  to  anarchy  and  Bolshev 
ism,  Theodore  Roosevelt  would  have  led  the  fight  with 
his  invincible  common  sense  and  his  sound  Americanism. 

In  the  coming  struggle  we  can  win  the  victory  only  by 
heeding  his  repeated  injunction : 

"All  of  us,  no  matter  from  what  land  our  parents  came, 
no  matter  in  what  way  we  may  severally  worship  our  Cre 
ator,  must  stand  shoulder  to  shoulder  in  a  united  America 
for  the  elimination  of  race  and  religious  prejudice.  We 
must  stand  for  a  reign  of  equal  justice  to  both  big  and 
small.  We  must  insist  on  the  maintenance  of  the  American 
standard  of  living.  We  must  stand  for  an  adequate  national 
control  which  shall  secure  a  better  training  of  our  young 
men  in  time  of  peace,  both  for  the  work  of  peace  and  for 
the  work  of  war.  We  must  direct  every  national  resourcet 
material  and  spiritual,  to  the  path  not  of  shirking  diffi 
culties,  but  of  training  our  people  to  overcome  difficulties. 
Our  aim  must  be,  not  to  make  life  easy  and  soft,  not  to 
soften  soul  and  body,  but  to  fit  us  in  virile  fashion  to  do  a 
great  work  for  all  mankind.  ...  In  our  relations  with  the 
outside  world  we  must  abhor  wrongdoing,  and  disdain  to 
commit  it,  and  we  must  no  less  disdain  the  base  spirit  which 
tamely  submits  to  wrong-doing.  Finally  and  most  important 
of  all,  we  must  strive  for  the  establishment  within  our 
own  borders  of  that  stern  and  lofty  standard  of  personal 
and  public  morality  which  shall  guarantee  to  each  man  his 
rights,  and  which  shall  insist  in  return  upon  the  whole 
performance  by  each  man  of  his  duty  both  to  his  neighbor 
and  to  the  great  nation  whose  flag  must  symbolize  in  the 
future  as  it  has  symbolized  in  the  past  the  highest  hopes 
of  all  mankind." 


ESTIMATES  OF  WILL  H.  HAYS  AND 
GIFFOED  PINCHOT 


CHAPTER  XXIX 

ESTIMATES  OF  WILL  H.  HAYES  AND 
GIFFOED  PINCHOT 

BEING  struck  with  a  beautiful  extract  of  an 
address  on  Theodore  Roosevelt  by  Mr.  Will  H. 
Hays,   chairman  of  the  Republican  National 
Commission,  before  the  joint  session  of  the  Indiana 
State  Legislature,  February  7th,  I  wired  Mr.  Hays 
at  his  home  in  Sullivan,  Indiana,  asking  for  the  text 
of  that  address.    Immediately  I  received  a  telegram 
granting  the  request  and  use  most  of  the  address  as 
follows : 

"I  have  kept  the  promise  that  I  made  to  myself 
when  I  was  21.  That  promise  was  to  live  my  life 
to  the  hilt  until  I  was  60,  and  I  have  kept  that 
promise." 

These  words  Theodore  Roosevelt  said  to  his  sister  a  few 
days  before  he  died.  And  this,  indeed,  he  did. 

To  follow  this  man's  life  is  a  succession  of  steps  from 
peak  to  peak ;  to  describe  his  accomplishments  is  a  review 
of  superlatives.  He  had  more  knowledge  about  more  things 
than  any  man,  amazing  all  with  whom  he  came  in  con 
tact  by  the  breadth  of  his  knowledge,  prodigious  beyond 
comparison.  He  was  intensely  human  in  the  freedom  of  his 
unselfishness,  and  his  name  is  synonomous  with  courage 
and  activity.  He  was  as  imaginative  as  a  poet,  as  appeal 
ing  as  a  child,  loving  to  fight  and  fight  close,  at  grips  in 
the  clinches,  but  with  the  deepest  personal  affections  and 

395 


396  THEODOKE   KOOSEVELT 

the  broadest  love>  for  all  men.  He  wanted  only  real  things. 
While  always  progressive  and  reaching  out,  quick  to  think 
and  quick  to  act,  he  sought  the  practical  method  whicli 
would  bring  results.  His  alert  and  intense  nature  was  al 
ways  in  tune  to  the  needs  of  the  moment,  but  he  went 
deeper  into  the  fundamentals  than  any  one  of  his  period. 
In  office,  while  wise  men  were  asking  what  might  best 
be  done,  Roosevelt  would  reply,  The  best  has  been  done — 
and  he  was  right.  He  would  approach  with  the  same 
assurance  and  equal  ease  the  settlement  of  the  Russian- 
Japanese  war  or  a  bout  with  a  prize  fighter,  a  social  recep 
tion  or  the  construction  of  the  Panama  Canal.  As  early 
as  1902  he  spoke  the  language  that  the  Kaiser  understood, 
and  never  ceased  to  speak  that  language  while  he  lived. 

There  may  have  been  doubt  in  Roosevelt's  mind  as  to  the 
outcome  of  his  position  in  the  Venezuelan  matter,  but  there 
was  never  any  wavering  in  his  mental  processes  as  to  his 
duty  in  the  premises  nor  any  vacillation  in  his  movements 
in  execution.  He  summoned  Dr.  Holleben,  the  German 
Ambassador,  to  the  White  House  and  told  him  that  if  Ger 
many  would  not  consent  to  arbitrate  in  ten  days  Dewey 
would  be  ordered  to  Venezuela.  When  he  did  not  hear  from 
von  Holleben  for  a  week  he  called  him  and  told  him  that 
instead  of  three  days  more  it  would  be  two  days  more — 
and  within  thirty-six  hours  the  Kaiser  yielded.  What  a 
characteristic  Roosevelt  action !  With  equal  ease  and  the 
same  assurance  he  undertook  the  Panama  Canal,  after  four 
centuries  of  failure,  and  made  -possible  its  completion  to 
the  practical  satisfaction  of  the  civilized  world,  when  with 
out  him  it  would  still  be  a  subject  of  diplomatic  discussion. 
And  the  voice  that  called  his  own  babies  about  him  and  that 
cried  for  justice  to  little  children  was  the  same  voice  that 
thundered,  "Perdicaris  alive  or  Rasuli  dead." 

His  great  fight  for  preparedness  and  Americanism  in 
this  country  against  professional  pacifism  and  parlor  Social 
ism  was  not  the  development  of  his  later  years,  nor  did  it 
grow  out  of  his  conviction  of  the  necessities  of  the  recent 
period.  When  he  was  Assistant  Secretary  of  the  Navy,  in 
1897,  he  cried  for  naval  preparedness  for  the  Spanish- 
American  war,  which  he  believed  inevitable;  he  overhauled 
the  navy ;  he  got  and  spent  the  great  appropriations  for. 
ammunition  for  target  practice,  and  in  his  cable  to  Dewey, 
on  February  25,  1898,  two  months  before  war  was  declared 


ESTIMATES    OF   FRIENDS  397 

on  Spain,  in  which  the  first  step  toward  American  occupa 
tion  of  the  Philippine  Islands  was  -taken,  he  performed  as 
naturally  as  when  he  left  the  New  York  Legislature  and 
all  behind  him  to  go  West  and  prepare  physically  for  his 
career,  -and  as  fully  as  when,  like  a  voice  in  the  wilder 
ness,  in  1914,  1915  and  1916,  he  cried  out,  "Prepare,  pre 
pare,  prepare!" 

By  some  he  was  called  impetuous,  yet  when  McKinley 
died  he  made  the  statement,  "I  promise  to  take  over  and 
continue  -to  completion,  so  far  as  it  lies  within  my  abilities 
to  do  so,  the  policies  of  the  great  President  who  now  lies 
dead."  He  was  called  war-like  by  some — yet  he  cham 
pioned  the  cause  of  international  arbitration  of  world  dif 
ferences  of  opinion  and  claims,  both  in  and  out  of  office, 
practiced  what  he  preached  by  submitting  the  Pious  Fund 
case,  and  kept  the  great  part  of  the  world  peaceful  during 
his  regime.  He  was  for  peace  when  peace  was  right,  but 
if  to  win  right  for  right's  sake  war  was  necessary,  then  he 
was  for  war,  or  for  whatever  else  was  needed;  and,  above 
all,  he  was  for  America  eternally,  and  there  he  was  the 
severest  partisan. 

I  have  heard  the  story  that  when  Roosevelt  decided  very 
early  to  take  part  in  politics  his  family  was  not  immediately 
in  sympathy  with  that  form  of  public  service;  he  was  told 
by  them  that  he  would  find  no  one  at  the  meeting  which 
he  purposed  attending  but  "grooms,  liquor  dealers  and  low 
politicians."  "Well,"  Roosevelt  replied,  "if  that  is  so  then 
they  belong  to  the  governing  class,  and  you  don't,  and  I 
mean  if  I  can  to  be  of  the  governing  class."  And  he  was 
of  the  governing  class  from  that  moment  until  he  died. 
He  first  governed  himself,  and  at  no  time  did  he  fail  to 
apply  to  his  own  personal  life,  to  his  thought  and  to  his 
actions,  the  same  code  he  applied  to  others.  Weak  physi 
cally,  he  made  himself  strong.  Whenever  wrong,  he  made 
himself  right.  With  an  entire  absence  of  any  false  pride, 
he  would  consult  his  friends,  urge  suggestions,  and  freely 
adopt  them.  He  is  said  to  have  had  from  his  earliest  youth 
this  characteristic  of  absorbing  good  from  every  one  and 
everything  with  which  he  came  in  contact.  He  had  it  to 
the  fullest  in  the  wisdom  of  his  maturity.  He  would  dis 
cuss  himself  in  as  frank  manner  as  he  would  discuss  his 
opponents.  His  career  as  a  member  of  the  Legislature,  as 
Civil  Service  Commissioner,  Police  Commissioner,  Assistant 


398  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

Secretary  of  the  Navy,  Colonel  of  Rough  Riders,  Governor 
of  New  York,  Vice-President  and  President  of  the  United 
States,  as  author,  historian,  naturalist,  hunter,  sportsman, 
husband,  father,  citizen,  carried  through  it  all  as  the  one 
controlling  motif  a  consistent  determination  to  do  what 
he  thought  was  right.  It  mattered  not  one  whit  how  that 
course  affected  himself  or  anyone  else  or  anything  if  he 
thought  it  was  right  he  did  it — and  he  did  it  to  the  hilt. 

We  cannot  say  that  he  was  a  typical  American,  because 
he  was  too  unlike  to  be  typical ;  he  had  no  counterpart, 
he  was  distinctive,  unique  "and  original ;  the  foremost  Ameri 
can,  yes ;  the  leader  of  leaders,  yes ;  but  above  all,  was  he 
the  supreme  typification  of  that  intangible  thing  we  love  to 
think  of  as  the  American  spirit. 

Theodore  Roosevelt  was  my  friend.  This  friendship,  of 
short  duration  as  years  are  counted,  was  of  a  complete 
ness  and  intensity  that  does  not  reckon  time  and  that 
brought  the  profoundest  appreciation,  that  shall  continue 
while  life  lasts.  The  more  intimate  our  relations  the  deeper 
grew  my  regard,  for  the  better  one  knew  him  the  greater 
must  have  been  one's  appreciation.  And  I  never  left  him 
that  I  did  not  consciously  marvel  yet  again  at  the  man. 

We  measure  men  by  comparison.  A  man  is  great  or  small 
as  he  rises  above  or  sinks  below  the  level  of  the  generation 
to  which  he  belongs.  When  he  is  gone,  we  can  estimate  his 
size  by  the  space  left  vacant.  By  either  of  these  standards, 
what  a  man  was  this  man!  He  was  powerful  in  influence 
because  men  believed  in  him ;  he  moved  among  his  fellows 
daily  with  the  most  unexampled  virility,  giving  and  taking, 
and  men  believed  him.  No  higher  tribute  can  be  paid  him. 

I  affirm  that  to  love  truth  for  truths'  sake  is  the  principal 
part  of  human  perfection  in  this  world.  That,  above  all 
other  things,  this  man  did.  He  was  honest  in  act,  honest 
in  word,  and  honest  in  thought.  The  crime  of  shame  was 
not  his.  He  was  himself,  with  no  pretense.  He  recognized 
the  perfidity  of  pretense  and  the  wickedness  of  make- 
believe,  and  he  abhorred  fhem  with  the  wholesome  hate 
they  merit.  What  he  thought,  he  said;  and  what  he  said, 
he  believed.  Honest  himself,  he  attributed  honesty  to  every 
one  with  whom  he  came  in  contact.  With  him,  every  man 
was  innocent  until  twice  proven  guilty.  Then  again,  he 
would  stand  in  faith,  always  giving  another  chance.  But 
when  convinced  of  the  guilt  of  -man  or  thing,  he  would  see 


ESTIMATES    OF    FRIENDS  399 

to  the  eradication  with  that  unerring  judgment,  fearless 
dispatch  and  satisfying  completeness  approached  by  no  one 
else. 

"Never  hit  unless  you  have  to — but  when  you  hit, 
end  it." 

We  are  wont  to  think  of  this  man,  with  his  outdoor  mind 
and  his  two  fists,  as  a  man's  man.  He  was  that.  He  was 
that  above  all  other  things.  Yet  his  chivalry  would  have 
graced  any  court.  In  this,  too,  there  was  no  pretense.  He 
was  true  to  his  manhood.  His  own  mother,  wife,  sister, 
and  daughters  had  to  him  made  all  women  sacred.  He 
moved  with  the  knowledge  that  a  good  woman  is  the  one 
perfect  workman-ship  of  God — and  he  acted  accordingly. 
He  loved  his  home.  He  recognized  it  as  the  one  and  only 
glimpse  of  heaven  on  earth  afforded  man — and  he  acted 
accordingly. 

Deeply  he  appreciated  the  contribution  of  American 
women  to  this  war,  and  often  I  have  heard  him  express 
this  with  the  enthusiasm  it  merits.  And  let  none  of  us 
forget  in  passing  just  how  great  has  been  this  contribution 
and  how  great  our  obligation.  It  is  the  women  who  have 
stood  the  severest  strain,  and  second  only  to  the  soldiers  Is 
the  credit  due  them. 

And  how  this  soldier  thought  the  thoughts,  sensed  the 
wants  and  sympathized  with  the  needs  of  the  soldiers,  and 
how  full  was  his  proper  appreciation  of  them !  Unable  to  go 
himself,  always  his  heart  was  with  his  four  boys  and  their 
comrades,  and  our  entire  army  was  to  him  as  were  his  four 
boys.  He  would  say  to  me:  "They  say  food  will  win  the 
war,  Liberty  Bonds  will  win  the  war,  thrift  stamps  will  win 
the  war.  They  won't.  They  will  all  help  win  the  war.  But 
fhe  war  will  be  won  by  the  fighting  men  at  the  fighting  front 
and  in  no  other  way."  And  he  was  right.  And  this  man's 
appreciation  of  our  soldiers  is  the  kind  of  appreciation  that 
this  country  feels  and  will  not  forget. 

It  would  be  my  wont  to  say  of  Colonel  Roosevelt  that 
which  he  would  have  me  say  of  him.  Could  we  consult 
him  now,  I  know  it  would  be  his  wish,  above  all  things, 
that  we  draw  something  from  his  example  of  benefit  to  the 
people  he  loved  so  much. 

The  lesson  of  the  patriotism  of  Theodore  Roosevelt,  which 
will  live  forever,  is  his  monument.  This  patriotism  was  not 


400  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

the  kind  that  is  born  of  extremities;  it  was  not  that  fire, 
splendid  as  it  is,  which  burns  in  the  souls  of  men  only 
when  their  country  is  in  danger.  His  patriotism  was  not 
the  patriotism  stirred  only  by  martial  music — it  was  the 
patriotism  of  good  citizenship,  at  the  fireside,  the  plow,  the 
mart,  in  low  places  and  in  high  places,  in  season  and  out 
of  season ;  it  was  the  patriotism  which  caused  him  to  make 
his  country's  welfare  his  own  business  and  to  interest  him 
self  continually  in  the  practical  politics  of  his  community. 
He  believed  and  acted  always  the  patriotism  of  peace  as 
well  as  of  war,  and  it  moved  the  man  to  measure  his  every 
act,  from  his  earliest  manhood  to  the  date  of  his  death,  by 
how,  in  his  good  judgment,  he  could  do  the  most  for  his 
country's  welfare.  This  is  the  only  patriotism  which,  in  the 
last  analysis,  is  worth  while. 

I  was-  with  Theodore  Roosevelt  on  the  morning  he  re 
ceived  word  of  Quentin's  death.  I  was  with  him  the  next 
day  at  Saratoga,  when,  with  his  heart  literally  crushed, 
he  interpolated  in  a  speech  he  was  reading,  saying:  "The 
finest,  the  bravest,  the  best  of  our  young  men  have  sprung 
eagerly  forward  to  face  death  for  the  sake  of  a  high  ideal ; 
and  thereby  they  have  brought  home  to  us  the  great  truth 
that  life  consists  of  more  than  easy-going  pleasure,  and  more 
than  hard,  conscienceless,  brutal  striving  after  purely  ma 
terial  success ;  that  while  we  must  rightly  care  for  the  body 
and  the  things  of  the  body,  yet  that  such  care  leads  no 
where  unless  we  also  have  thought  for  our  own  souls  and 
for  the  souls  of  our  brothers.  When  these  gallant  boys,  on 
the  golden  crest  of  life,  gladly  face  death  for  the  sake  of 
an  ideal,  shall  not  we  who  stay  behind,  who  have  not  been 
found  worthy  of  the  grand  adventure,  shall  not  we  in  our 
turn  try  to  shape  our  lives  so  as  to  make  in  this  country 
the  ideal  which  in  our  hearts  we  acknowledge,  and  in  the 
actual  workaday  business  of  our  world,  come  a  little  nearer 
together,  and  make  this  country  a  better  place  to  live  in 
for  these  men,  and  for  the  women  who  sent  these  men  to 
battle  and  for  the  children  who  are  to  come  after  them." 

He  has  gone  ahead  on  4he  journey  of  a  thousand  years. 
It  is  not  fitting  and  he  would  not  have  this  occasion  tinged 
at  all  with  grief  that  the  common  lot  should  come  to  him, 
but  rather  pride  and  joy  that  his  task  was  done  so  worth 
ily.  Yet  so  great  was  the  personality  and  so  deep  the  im 
press  of  this  man  upon  all,  it  is  impossible  for  men  to  con- 


ESTIMATES    OF   FRIENDS  401 

template  his  passing  without  grief  as  poignant  as  the  im 
mediate  prostration  that  was  consequent  upon  -his.  departure. 
While  we  bow  in  submission,  as  we  do,  we  would  have  had 
things  otherwise  if  we  could.  "Where,"  said  the  despairing 
Villon,  "where  are  the  snows  of  yesteryear?"  "The  snows 
of  yesteryear  are  in  the  stream,  in  cloud  and  rain,  in  sap 
of  tree  and  bloom  of  flower,  in  heart  and  brain  of  talent  and 
of  beauty."  Nothing  is  lost.  So,  the  energies  of  this  man 
having  touched  into  activity  forces  influencing  still  others 
and  others,  will  move  on  forever. 

I  am  sure  the  religion  and  philosophy  that  guided  him 
through  his  life  did  not  fail  him  at  his  death.  And  let  us 
not  forget  that  strength  in  the  man  which  in  the  last  analy 
sis  was  greatest  of  all.  Theodore  Roosevelt  was  a  man  of 
great  faith ;  he  was  a  Christian  gentleman. 

As  he  saw  the  world  receding,  I  am  convinced  that  the 
only  sadness  he  had  was  the  thought  of  separation  from 
those  he  loved  and  from  the  service  to  the  people  he  served 
so  well. 

Death  is  not  sleep— death  is  a  great  awakening.  For  him 
the  night  is  done,  and  it  is  written  that,  "Joy  cometh  in  the 
morning." 

Theodore  Roosevelt — student,  scholar,  legislator,  executive, 
citizen  of  the  world,  patriot,  friend,  gentleman  Christian, 
master  mind,  great  heart,  pure  soul. 

Theodore  Roosevelt's  last  written  message,  pencilled 
by  his  own  hand  a  few  hours  before  his  death,  ad 
dressed  in  the  form  of  a  memorandum  for  Will  H. 
Hays,  chairman  of  the  Republican  National  Commit 
tee,  was  published  for  the  first  time  in  the  March 
North  American  Review  in  a  facsimile  reproduction. 
The  memorandum  is  as  follows: 

HAYS: 

"See  him;  he  must  go  to  Washington  for  10  days;  see 
Senate  and  House;  prevent  split  on  domestic  policies." 

Colonel  Roosevelt  was  in  the  habit,  it  was  said,  of 
making  brief  memoranda  for  his  stenographer  or  for 
himself.  The  foregoing  was  found  on  his  desk  the 
morning  following  his  death  with  his  pencil  along- 


402  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

side.  As  Chairman  Hays  was  in  the  West  at  the  time, 
it  probably  was  the  intention  of  the  Colonel  to  have 
his  stenographer  get  Mr.  Hays  on  the  'phone,  or  in 
some  way  promptly  communicate  with  him. 

This  memorandum  indicates  that  Mr.  Roosevelt  was 
recognized  as  the  head  of  the  Republican  party  of  the 
nation  and  that  he  had  lai.d  down  a  well-defined  policy 
of  action  and  was  conferring  with  Mr.  Hays,  whom, 
he  so  trusted  and  loved,  with  reference  to  it. 

ADDRESS  OF  GIFFORD  PINCHOT 

At  the  memorial  service  held  in  Philadelphia  a 
brilliant  address  was  made  by  Gifford  Pinchot,  who 
worked  so  enthusiastically  and  successfully  with  Presi 
dent  Roosevelt  in  the  conservation  of  national  re 
sources  in  forest,  field  and  stream,  etc.  With  his  per 
mission  we  quote  from  it  as  follows: 

We  who  loved  Roosevelt  have  not  lost  him.  The  qualities 
we  treasured  in  him,  his  loyalty,  fcis  genial  kindness,  his 
unwearied  thoughtfulness  for  others,  the  generosity  which 
made  him  prefer  his  friends  in  honor  to  himself,  his  tender 
ness  with  children,  his  quick  delight  in  living,  and  the  firm 
soundness  of  his  life's  foundations,  are  potent  with  us  yet. 
The  broad  human  sympathy  which  bound  to  him  the  mil 
lions  who  'never  saw  his  face,  his  clean  courage  and  self- 
forgetful  devotion  to  his  country,  the  tremendous  sanity  of 
his  grasp  on  the  problems  ot  the  nation  and  the  world,  and 
the  superb  simplicity  and  directness  of  his  life  and  thought 
still  live  as  the  inspiration  and  the  basis  for  -the.  new  and 
better  world  which  is  to  come. 

The  people  loved  Roosevelt  because  he  was  like  them.  In 
him  the  common  qualities  were  lifted  to  a  higher  tension 
and  a  greater  power,  but  they  were  still  the  same.  What  he 
did  plain  men  understood  and  would  have  liked  to  do.  The 
people  loved  him  because  his  thoughts,  though  loftier,  were 
yet  within  their  reach,  and  his  motives  were  always  clear 
in  their  sight.  They  knew  his  purposes  were  always  right. 
To  millions  he  was  the  image  of  their  better  selves. 


ESTIMATES    OF    FRIENDS  403 

Roosevelt  was  the  greatest  preacher  of  righteousness  in 
modern  times.  Deeply  religious  beneath  the  surface,  he 
made  right  living  seem  the  natural  thing,  and  there  was  no 
man  beyond  the  reach  of  his  preaching  and  example.  In 
the  sight  of  all  men,  he  lived  the  things  he  taught,  and  mil 
lions  followed  him  because  he  was  the  clear  examplar  of  his 
teaching. 

Unless  we  may  except  his  conservation  policies,  Roose 
velt's  greatest  service  during  his  Presidency  was  the  in 
spiration  he  gave  young  men.  To  them  he  was  the  leader 
in  all  they  hoped  to  be  and  do  for  the  common  good.  The 
generation  which  was  entering  manhood  while  he  was  Presi 
dent  will  carry  with  it  to  the  grave  the  impress  of  his 
leadership  and  personality. 

To  the  boys  of  America  he  was  all  they  hoped  to  be — a 
hunter,  a  rider,  a  sportsman,  eager  for  the  tang  of  danger, 
keen  and  confident,  and  utterly  unafraid.  There  was  no 
part  of  his  example  but  was  good  for  boys  to  follow.  Roose 
velt,  half  boy  till  his  life's  end,  yet  the  manliest  of  men,  of  a 
fineness  his  best  friends  best  understood,  was  their  ideal, 
and  will  not  cease  to  be  because  he  has  passed  on. 

To  him  the  unforgivable  sin,  and  there  was  but  one,  was 
betrayal  of  the  interests  of  his  country.  The  man  who 
sinned  that  sin  he  neither  forgave  nor  forgot.  For  opposi 
tion  to  himself  he  cared  but  little;  enemies  he  had  in 
plenty,  but  they  cast  no  shadow  on  his  soul.  He  was  a  gal 
lant  and  a  cheerful  fighter,  willing,  as  he  often  said,  to  be 
beaten  for  any  cause  that  was  worth  fighting  for,  and 
whether  in  defeat  or  victory,  never  unbalanced  and  never 
dismayed. 

Roosevelt  lived  intensely  in  his  family  life.  The  doer  of 
great  things  himself,  and  the  occasion  of  great  accomplish 
ment  in  others,  what  he  did  was  not  done  alone.  It  is  but 
right  that  we  should  recognize  the  part  played  by  the  strong 
and  gentle,  wise  and  loving  woman,  whose  hand  was  so 
rarely  seen,  yet  still  more  rarely  absent,  in  all  that  was 
best  in  her  great  husband's  finest  living  and  most  memorable 
achievements. 

The  greatest  of  executives,  he  transformed  the  machinery 
of  government  with  the  flame  of  his  own  spirit.  He  was 
his  own  hardest  taskmaster,  and  always  unwilling  to  ask 
of  his  men  the  thing  he  was  not  ready  to  do  himself.  He 


404  THEODORE  ROOSEVELT 

was  our  leader  because  he  was  the  better  man.  He  worked 
more  hours,  at  higher  speed,  with  wider  vision.  He  trusted 
us,  and  gave  each  man  his  head.  Always  eager  to  recognize 
good  work  and  give  due  credit  for  it,  always  ready  with 
an  excuse  for  the  man  who  honestly  tried  and  failed,  he 
had  nothing  but  scorn  and  contempt  for  the  man  who  never 
tried  at  all. 

Filled  with  the  joy  and  the  spice  of  living,  afraid  neither 
of  life  nor  of  death,  thankful  sunshine  or  rain,  never  sorry 
for  himself,  never  asking  odds  of  any  man  or  any  situation, 
he  used  the  powers  he  had  as  only  his  great  soul  could  use 
them — powers  seldom  if  ever  before  assembled  in  one  in 
dividual,  but  nearly  all  of  them  duplicated,  one  hers,  one 
there,  within  -the  knowledge  of  us  all.  It  was  the  use  his 
soul  made  of  his  body  and  his  mind  that  was  the  essence 
°f  his  greatness. 

The  greatest  of  his  victories  was  his  last,  his  victory  over 
the  indifference  of  a  people  long  misled.  He  was  the  first 
to  see  the  need  for  it.  To  gain  it  he  seemed  to  throw  away 
his  future.  In  the  event  he  won  results  and  earned  a  name 
which  will  live  while  the  knowledge  of  America's  part  in 
the  great  war  still  endures. 

He  was  the  leader  of  the  people  because  his  courage  and 
his  soundness  made  him  so.  More  than  any  man  of  his  time, 
he  was  loved  by  those  who  ought  to  love  him,  and  hated  by 
those  who  ought  to  hate  him.  His  ideals,  his  purposes,  his 
points  of  view,  his  hostilities,*  and  his  enthusiasms  were 
such  as  every  man  could  entertain  and  understand.  It  was 
only  in  the  application  of  them  that  he  rose  to  heights  be 
yond  the  reach  of  all  the  rest  of  us. 

What  explains  his  power?  Life  is  the  answer.  Life  at 
its  warmest  and  fullest  and  freest,  at  its  utmost  in  vigor, 
at  its  sanest  in  purpose  and  restraint,  at  its  cleanest  and 
clearest,  life  tremendous  in  volume,  unbounded  in  scope,  yet 
controlled  and  guided  with  a  disciplined  power  which  made 
him,  as  few  men  have  ever  been,  the  captain  of  his  souL 
Alert,  glad,  without  meanness  and  without  fear,  free  from 
arrogance  and  affectation  with  few  hesitations  and  few 
regrets,  slow  to  promise  but  ardent  to  perform,  delighting 
in  difficulties,  welcoming  danger,  sensitive  to  the  touch  of 
every  phase  of  human  existence,  yet  dominated  by  standards 
more  severely  set  for  himself  than  for  any  others,  sustained 
by  a  breadth  of  knowledge  and  of  sympathy  and  by  an  en- 


ESTIMATES    OF   FRIENDS  405 

durance,  both  physical  and  mental,  which  belonged  to  him 
alone,  Roosevelt  lived  with  a  completeness  that  lesser  men 
can  never  know. 

/*  R°°sevelt'  above  all  the  men  of  his  time,  the  promise 
of  the  Master  was  fulfilled,  "I  came  that  ye  might  have 
life,  and  that  ye  might  have  it  more  abundantly  " 


ESTIMATES    OF    REV.    DR.    LYMAN 

ABBOTT  AND  OF  A  NEW  YORK 

MERCHANT  FRIEND 


©  Underwood  &  Underwood,  N.  Y. 

COLONEL    ROOSEVELT    AND    REV.    AKTITFR     JAMES     MASON,     VICE- 
CHANCELLOR,     CAMBRIDGE    UNIVERSITY,  LONDON,  ENG. 


CHAPTER  XXX 

ESTIMATES   OF   REV.    DR.   LYMAN   ABBOTT 
AND  OF  A  NEW  YORK  MERCHANT  FRIEND 

BY  the  courtesy  of  the  Outlook  we  print  the  fol 
lowing   editorial    on    Theodore   Roosevelt   by 
Rev.   Lyman   Abbott,    D.D.     Few   men   Mr. 
Roosevelt  respected  and  loved  more  than  Dr.  Abbott 
and  that  affection  was  fully  reciprocated.     The  fol 
lowing  estimate  is  of  especial  value: 

Mr.  Roosevelt  was  to  me  a  wise  counselor,  a  courageous 
comrade,  an  inspiring  personality,  and  always  a  loyal  and 
considerate  friend.  Writing  on  the  day  of  his  death  and 
under  the  shadow  of  a  great  sorrow,  I  will  not  trust  my 
self  to  give  any  expression  to  my  personal  feeling  about 
him,  who  was  the  foremost  statesman  of  his  time,  and,  be 
cause  of  his  sterling  virtues,  was  at  once  the  best  beloved 
and  the  most  bitterly  execrated  of  America's  public  men. 
But  I  may  perhaps  do  something  to  interpret  to  our  readers 
the  inspiration  of  his  power  and  the  secret  of  his  extraordi 
nary  career.  Modern  democracy  denies  the  assumption  that 
the  few  must  govern  and  the  many  must  be  governed  and  to 
Aristotle's  three  forms  of  government — government  by  the 
one,  by  the  few,  by  the  many — it  is  gradually  adding  a 
fourth :  self-government.  For  in  lieu  of  government  by  the 
best  class  in  the  community  over  the  rest  it  is  substitut 
ing  government  by  the  best  in  every  man  over  the  worser 
elements  in  every  man. 

In  my  judgment,  no  man  in  the  history  of  America,  not 
even  Abraham  Lincoln,  did  so  much  as  Theodore  Roosevelt 
to  expedite  the  era  of  self-government. 

409 


410  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

Entering  politics  at  twenty-two  resolved  to  make  it  his 
profession,  Mr.  Roosevelt  assumed  from  the  outset  that  poli 
tics  is  the  science  and  practice  of  government,  and  that  to 
succeed  in  the  science  and  practice  of  government  would  re 
quire  the  best  that  was  in  him.  He  was  ambitious,  not  to 
govern,  but  to  lead.  He  brought  to  his  earliest  cam 
paign  a  frankness  and  a  courage  which  were  novelties  in 
American  politics.  He  had  a  keen  sense  of  moral  values 
and  a  dominating  faith  in  moral  forces.  With  an  inspired 
instinct  which  men  call  genius,  he  perceived  that  virtue 
and  intelligence  are  characteristic  of  the  American  people, 
and  to  that  virtue  and  that  intelligence  he  habitually  ap 
pealed — never  to  their  prejudices  or  their  passions,  though 
he  never  lacked  the  courage  to  rebuke  those  prejudices 
and  confront  those  passions.  His  methods  of  appeal 
were  sometimes  ingenious,  but  they  were  always 
courageous,  and  his  aim  was  always  the  same.  When 
he  was  Civil  Service  Commissioner  and  Congress  at 
tempted  to  thwart  Civil  Service  reform  by  cut 
ting  down  appropriations,  he  appealed  to  the  people  by 
abandoning  examinations  in  those  districts  whose  repre 
sentatives  had  voted  for  reducing  appropriations  and  con 
tinuing  examinations  in  those  districts  whose  representatives 
had  supported  Civil  Service  reform.  When  he  was  Police 
Commissioner,  by  his  fairness  he  won  the  loyal  support  of 
every  honest  policeman,  and  by  the  result  proved  that  the 
rascals  who  had  brought  disrepute  upon  the  police  adminis 
tration  were  in  a  minority.  When  he  was  elected  Governor 
of  the  State  of  New  York,  he  announced  his  intention  to 
consult  with  both  Mr.  Low  and  Mr.  Platt,  and  faced  the 
hostility  both  of  the  Old  Guard  and  of  the  radical  reformers 
because  he  did  not  wish  to  govern  the  Republican  party, 
but  to  lead  it.  When  he  became  President,  he  was  equally 
ready  to  confer  with  a  cowboy  or  a  college  president,  a  labor 
leader  or  a  millionaire.  His  tests  of  character  were  not  con 
ventional  ;  they  were  not  learning,  or  culture,  or  social  posi 
tion,  or  political  influence,  or  wealth.  They  were  the  com 
mon  virtues — courage,  frankness,  political  honesty,  personal 
purity.  His  messages  to  Congress  were  messages  to  the 
American  people,  and  it  has  been  well  said  of  them  that 
they  were  "quite  as  often  treatises  on  the  moral  principles 
of  government  as  they  were  recommendations  for  specific 
legislation  or  administrative  policies."  "I  am  accused  of 


ESTIMATES    OP   FRIENDS  411 

preaching/'  he  once  said  to  a  group  of  his  friends;  "but 
I  have  got  such  a  bully  pulpit." 

This  habit  of  appeal  to  the  best  in  every  man  kept  Mr. 
Roosevelt  in  what  his  critics  sometimes  called  the  "middle 
of  the  road."  He  denounced  corruptionists,  whatever  their 
position  or  political  party.  He  attacked,  often  in  the  same 
speech,  "malefactors  of  great  wealth"  and  "undesirable  citi 
zens."  He  urged  on  the  Senate  a  general  arbitration  treaty 
more  radical  than  it  was  willing  to  adopt,  and  at  the  same 
time  insisted  that  until  an  International  Supreme-  Court  is 
firmly  established  the  nation  must  have  an  army  and  navy 
adequate  to  protect  the  rights  of  its  citizens;  and  when 
such  a  Court  is  established  the  nations  must  be  prepared 
to  maintain  its  decrees  against  any  recalcitrant  nation.  The 
last-published  letter  he  wrote  illustrated  the  judicial  poise 
of  a  nature  always  controlled  by  a  passion  for  even-handed 
justice.  "We  should  insist,"  he  said,  "that  if  the  immigrant 
who  comes  here  in  good  faith  becomes  an  American  and 
assimilates  himself  to  us,  he  shall  be  treated  on  an  exact 
equality  with  every  one  else."  At  that  time  he  also  said: 
"There  can  be  no  divided  allegiance  here.  Any  man  who 
says  he  is  an  American,  but  something  else  also — he  is  not 
an  American  at  all.  We  tiave*  room  for  but  one  flag,  the 
American  flag,  and  this  excludes  the  red  flag." 

This  appeal  of  Mr.  Roosevelt  to  the  American  people  for 
justice,  equal  rights,  and  a  fair  opportunity  for  all  gives 
symmetry  and  cohesion  to  his  varied  administrations  as 
Civil  Service  Commissioner,  Police  Commissioner,  Assistant 
Secretary  of  the  Navy,  Lieutenant-Colonel  in  the  Army,  Gov 
ernor  of  New  York,  and  President  of  the  United  States.  It 
made  him  as  bitter  enemies  in  influential  quarters  as  any 
public  man  in  American  politics  has  ever  known;  but  it 
also  made  him  the  most  widely  admired  and  best-loved 
American  of  his  time. 

And  it  did  more.  It  went  far  toward  converting  American 
politics  from  a  trade  to  a  profession;  it  inspired  his  col 
leagues  and  his  party  associates ;  it  summoned  into  political 
activity  followers  in  both  parties  and  in  all  sections  of  the 
country.  Men  had  thought  of  politics  as  a  traffic  which 
no  man  could  enter  without  dishonor.  His  life  proved  to 
them  that  the  highest  success  is  possible  to  honor,  courage, 
and  purity  if  mated  to  ability.  It  raised  the  ideals  and  the 
standards  of  public  life  for  the  entire  American  people.  Its 


412  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

influence  in  creating  the  genuine  and  self -sacrificing  patri 
otism  which  called  the  nation  into  this  world  war  with  a 
voice  which  love  of  ease  and  dread  of  war  could  not  re 
sist  cannot  be  estimated.  And  it  has  done  more  than  any 
other  one  influence,  If  not  more  than  all  other  influences 
combined,  to  inspire  the  citizens  of  this  country  with  a  real 
faith  in  the  intelligence  and  virtue  of  their  fellowmen,  and 
so  in  the  practicability  of  that  self-government  which  is  the 
foundation  of  a  true  democracy  because  of  a  true  brother 
hood  of  man. 

A    MERCHANT    FRIEND    DESCRIBES 

ROOSEVELT 

I  called  on  a  New  York  City  merchant  and  said  to 
him,  "I  am  writing  a  book  on  Theodore  Roosevelt,  as 
a  tribute  of  love  for  him.  Remembering  what  op 
portunities  you  had  to  know  him,  and  what  mutual 
affection  there  was  between  you,  I  have  come  to  ask 
as  a  favor  that  you  give  me  a  brief  pen  sketch  of  him 
as  you  saw  him,  to  go  into  my  volume. "  He  replied, 
"You  know  I  am  a  business  man  and  not  an  author. 
Besides,  I  am  just  starting  on  a  long  ocean  voyage 
and  have  every  moment  of  time  on  shipboard  full  of 
business  laid  out  for  me.  And  yet  how  happy  I  should 
be  if  I  were  able  to  do  what  you  ask,  and  put  my 
little  tribute  of  love  in  with  yours.  I  will  see ;  if  the 
spirit  should  mo\e  me,  you  may  hear  from  me. ' '  Sure 
enough,  about  three  weeks  after,  I  received  a  letter 
from  him  on  shipboard,  in  which  he  enclosed  the  fol 
lowing  description  of  our  hero  friend: 

Roosevelt's  character  was  so  many  sided,  his  activities 
and  accomplishments  were  so  diverse,  that  an  analysis  of 
him  is  very  difficult.  Roosevelt  can  be  best  understood  by 
saying  that  he  was  a  symbol  of  America.  He  had  all  of 
the  qualities  of  the  American  nation;  all  of  the  qualities 
developed  to  almost  ideal  form,  and  if  he  had  weaknesses, 
they  were  ones  that  were  in  common  with  those  of  America. 
The  national  characteristics,  such  as  love  of  right  or  jus- 


ESTIMATES    OF    FRIENDS  413 

tice,  of  liberty,  the  nation's  virility,  and  its  great  spirit  of 
progress,  were  all  expressed  in  this  typical  American.  It 
was  natural  that  Roosevelt  should  be  an  emblem  of  America, 
as  he  was  a  product  of  American  ideals  and  at  the  same 
time  the  greatest  producer  of  American  ideals  for  a 
generation. 

Roosevelt  had  the  courage  to  do  what  he  felt  was  right, 
always,  and  entirely  oblivious  of  consequences.  He  never 
said  anything  for  effect.  Whatever  he  said,  he  said  because 
it  was  in  him  to  say  it.  Whatever  he  did,  he  did  because 
he  could  not  help  doing  it  His  thought,  his  spirit  had  to 
have  full  expression,  and  it  burst  from  him  in  every  word 
and  every  action. 

He  had  a  quality  which  was  so  peculiarly  one  of  the 
American  nation  that  we  call  special  attention  to  it.  It  is 
the  great  power  of  assimilation.  America,  as  no  other  na 
tion,  has  the  power  to  assimilate  whatever  comes  in  con 
tact  with  it.  Men  come  from  every  nation  of  the  world  and 
are  almost  immediately  absorbed  and  assimilated.  They 
take  her  ideals,  adopt  her  mode  of  thought,  her  language, 
and  after  a  time  even  assume  her  facial  and  physical  traits. 
Roosevelt  had  this  same  great  faculty.  He  molded  the 
thought,  he  affected  the  character,  he  uplifted  the  spirit  of 
almost  everyone  that  he  touched.  No  one  who  approached 
him  with  an  open  mind  went  away  without  consciously  or 
unconsciously  taking  with  him  something  of  Roosevelt.  I 
believe  that  he  gave  more  to  the  individual  men  of  America 
than  any  man  in  its  history.  I  was  very  much  impressed  by 
this  assimilating  power  one  day  at  his  home  at  lunch.  He 
had  asked  to  his  home  a  Spanish  poet,  a  Catholic  philoso 
pher,  and  a  Southern  lady,  a  widow  of  one  of  his  old 
friends.  What  widely  divergent  views  of  life  the  three  had, 
but  before  lunch  was  over  all  had  caught  Roosevelt's  spirit 
and  they  were  all  thinking  with  Roosevelt,  and  all  feeling 
that  they  had  found  something  in  common  with  him  that 
must  bind  them  permanently  to  him.  During  the  luncheon 
the  Spanish  poet  brought  up  the  subject  of  classical  and 
modern  Spanish  literature;  the  thought  occurred  to  me  that 
the  Colonel  would  not  be  prepared  to  discuss  this  subject. 
On  the  contrary,  however,  he  knew  Spanish  literature  thor 
oughly  and  discussed  it  with  ease  and  with  clearly  defined 
opinions  that  showed  that  he  had  not  only  read,  but  had 
studied  it  comprehensively.  There  was  something  so  sincere 


414  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

in  his  approach  to  a  subject,  something  so  fair  in  its  dis 
cussion,  and  something  so  deeply  human  in  his  whole  atti 
tude  to  it  that  one  could  not  help  falling  in  with  the  har 
mony  of  his  thought  and  of  his  spirit. 

The  atmosphere  of  his  home  was  so  intimate  and  fully 
laden  with  his  deepest  feeling  that  one  treats  it  with  some 
hesitation.  He  lived  simply  but  with  dignity,  without  for 
mality  but  with  the  forms  that  are  part  of  good  manners 
and  refinement.  His  home  at  Oyster  Bay,  on  a  hill  over 
looking  the  waters  of  the  -Sound,  had  the  form  of  a  Long 
Island  cottage  but  the  feeling  of  a  palace.  The  main  room 
of  the  house  was  a  large  living-room  or  library,  where 
Colonel  and  Mrs.  Roosevelt  received,  and  the  Colonel  told 
me  that  he  tried  to  keep  in  this  room  only  the  things  of 
which  he  was  fondest.  Its  walls  were  lined  with  shelves 
that  contained  books  that  were  his  constant  companions.  He 
was  a  voracious  reader  and  from  the  thousands  of  books 
that  he  read  he  selected  for  this  room  only  those  from  which 
he  did  not  want  to  be  separated,  and  with  these  books  he 
had  a  familiarity  that  was  remarkable.  In  a  conversation 
or  discussion  on  any  subject  he  would  say,  "That  reminds 

me  of  a  character  in ,"  or  "Let  us  see  what  says 

of  that,"  and  would  go  to  one  of  the  long  rows  of  books, 
select  the  one  that  he  wanted  and  turn  directly  to  a  page 
and  read  the  passage  to  which  he  had  referred.  With  a 
remarkable  memory  he  seemed  to  carry  in  his  mind  the 
contents  of  all  of  these  books. 

Besides  his  books  he  had  about  him  in  his  living  room 
a  few  objects  that  he  prized,  especially  among  which  I  re 
member  a  bronze  by  Frederick  Remington,  which  was  pre 
sented  to  him  by  the  Rough  Riders,  which  he  never  tired 
of  admiring.  In  other  rooms  of  the  house  he  had  his 
trophies  and  gifts,  the  things  that  recalled  to  him  varied 
experiences  from  his  hunting  expeditions  in  Central  Africa, 
to  his  visits  to  the  Courts  of  Europe.  Among  his  trophies 
the  one  that  especially  attracted  my  attention  was  the  butt 
of  one  of  his  rifles  that  was  shredded  by  the  teeth  of  a 
mountain  lion  with  whom  he  had  had  some  dealings  at 
close  quarters.  Among  his  gifts  he  enjoyed  showing  an 
old  edition  of  the  Niebelungenlied,  which  was  sent  to  him 
by  William  of  Germany.  It  was  a  very  large  book  and 
scrawled  over  the  whole  flyleaf  was  an  original  autograph 
verse  signed  by  the  Kaiser.  This  the  Colonel  would  delight 


ESTIMATES    OF    FRIENDS  415 

in  reading  aloud  to  his  friends,  adding  that  it  was  perfect 
doggerel,  which  in  deed  it  was. 

Each  of  the  hundreds  of  relics  bore  a  vivid  memory  to 
him  and  suggested  anecdotes  that  he  would  tell  with  inde 
scribable  humor,  and  one  marvelled  as  he  did,  at  the  di 
verse  experiences  that  had  been  recorded  in  his  life.  From 
each  experience  he  seemed  to  have  acquired  knowledge,  and 
not  only  this,  but  had  laid  it  away  in  the  storehouse  of  his 
memory  to  be  picked  out  and  used  at  the  opportune  moment. 

In  seeing  the  -Colonel  meet  people  of  all  nationalities  and 
of  all  stations  in  life,  his  versatility  was  simply  marvellous. 
I  shall  never  cease  to  be  grateful  that  this  great  and  good 
man  ever  came  into  my  life  and  love. 

This  portrait  so  life-like,  beside  being  the  tribute  of 
a  friend,  fairly  expresses  the  opinion  of  the  business 
men  of  the  United  States  with  reference  to  Mr. 
Roosevelt. 


ESTIMATES  OF  GEN.  LEONAED  WOOD- 
SEC.  FRANKLIN  K.  LANE— 
REV.  J.  R.  DAY 


CHAPTER  XXXI 

ESTIMATES  OF  GEN.  LEONARD  WOOD— SEC. 
FRANKLIN  K.  LANE— REV.  J.  R.  DAY 

I  WROTE  Gen.  Leonard  Wood  asking  him  for  an 
estimate  of  his  dear  personal  friend,  Theodore 
Roosevelt,  and  received  from  him  the  following 
answer : 

"I  shall  be  glad  to  help.    I  am  sending  you  a  brief 
statement  which  I  sent  George  Wharton  Pepper,  of 
Philadelphia.    It  is  short  and  to  the  point,  and  I  be 
lieve  will  give  you  what  you  want. ' ' 
The  following  is  the  estimate: 

Theodore  Roosevelt's  death  has  brought  to  many  thou 
sands  a  feeling  of  personal  sorrow,  and  to  all  Americans  a 
sense  of  great  and  irreparable  loss  to  our  country  in  this 
great  crisis. 

We  have  lost  the  great  leader.  Theodore  Roosevelt's  life 
was  one  of  service  for  country,  for  humanity,  and  for  right 
as  he  saw  it.  If  he  feared  anything,  it  was  duty  undone. 

Honest, 'upstanding,  God-fearing,  a  man  of  vision,  of  wide 
experience,  with  a  breadth  of  human  sympathy  which  em 
braced  all  races,  all  creeds  and  all  lands,  he  was  easily 
the  most  inspiring,  and  hence  the  most  dominant  figure  in 
American  life  since  Abraham  Lincoln. 

He  is  dead,  but  his  influence  lives  after  him.  In  the  ex 
ample  of  his  life  and  work,  in  his  ideals,  we  shall  ever  find 
inspiration  for  patriotic  effort,  and  incentive  to  high  en 
deavor. 

He  loved  the  strenuous  life  with  its  fierce  struggles.  He 
knew  that  words  alone  are  not  sufficient  and  that  we  must 

419 


420  THEODORE    ROOSEVELT 

at  times  meet  the  organized  forces  of  wrong  with  the  dis 
ciplined  strength  of  right. 

He  loved  nature  and  the  wild  places  of  the  world;  the 
birds  and  the  animals ;  and  he  understood  these  as  few  do. 
He  had  a  clean  soul.  He  loved  home,  family  and  friends — 
and  above  all,  his  country. 

In  war  he  offered  his  life  freely  for  his  country,  his  sons 
went  into  the  world's  war  with  his  blessing,  always  thought 
ful  of  those  under  him,  and  appreciative  of  the  humblest 
service.  He  had  the  personal  affection  and  devotion  of 
thousands. 

True  patriot,  best  type  of  American,  such  was  Theodore 
Roosevelt.  His  spirit  •will  march  in  the  van  of  our  armies 
in  war  and  strengthen  our  hearts  in  the  hour  of  darkness 
and  danger. 


ESTIMATE  OF  SECRETARY  LANE 

Secretary  Lane  mailed  me  the  following  lines  which 
he  had  sent  to  James  A.  Key,  chairman  of  the  Com 
mittee  of  Pensions,  House  of  Representatives,  highly 
commending  a  pension  of  $5,000.00  for  Mrs.  Roose 
velt,  which  pension  was  unanimously  passed  by  both 
Houses  of  Congress.  Secretary  Lane  says : 

The  impress  that  Theodore  Roosevelt's  personality  has 
ttade  upon  the  world  does  not  need  emphasis.  Whatever 
his  fame  as  a  statesman,  it  can  never  outrun  his  fame  as  a 
man.  However  widely  men  may  differ  from  him  in  mat 
ters  of  national  policy,  this  thing  men  in  their  hearts  would 
all  wish,  that  their  sons  might  have  within  them  the  spirit, 
the  will,  the  strength,  the  manliness,  the  Americanism  of 
Roosevelt.  He  was  made  of  that  rugged  and  heroic  stuff 
with  which  legend  delights  to  play.  The  Idylls  and  the 
Sagas  and  the  Iliads  have  been  woven  about  men  of  his 
mold.  We  may  surely  expect  to  see  developed  a  Roosevelt 
legend,  a  body  of  tales  that  will  exalt  the  physical  power 
and  endurance  of  the  -man  and  the  boldness  of  his  spirit, 
his  robust  capacity  for  blunt  speech  and  his  hearty  com 
radeship,  his  live  interest  in  all  things  living — these  will 
make  our  boys  for  the  long  future  proud  that  they  are  of 


ESTIMATES    OF   FRIENDS  421 

his  race  and  his  country.  And  no  surer  fame  than  this  can 
come  to  any  man — to  live  in  the  hearts  of  the  boys  of  his 
land  as  one  whose  doings  and  sayings  they  would  wish  to 
make  their  own. 

ESTIMATE  OF  DR.  DAY 

One  of  the  most  masterful  Roosevelt  Memorial  ad 
dresses  was  that  of  Rev.  James  R.  Day,  D.D.,  LL.D., 
Chancellor  of  Syracuse  University.  Dr.  Day,  a  giant 
in  body  and  mind,  at  one  time  was  one  of  the  most 
powerful  opponents  of  President  Roosevelt 's  anti 
trust  policy.  He  was  invited  by  the  New  York  Legis 
lature  to  make  a  memorial  address  before  it.  From  it 
we  quote  the  following: 

If  ten  years  ago  any  one  had  told  me  that  on  this  9th 
day  of  February  I  would  be  found  in  our  State  Capitol,  by 
your  request  delivering  a  eulogy  of  Theodore  Roosevelt,  he 
would  not  have  impressed  me  with  his  gift  of  prophecy ! 

But  that  is  Theodore  Roosevelt.  He  was  an  impossible 
man,  doing  impossible  things,  as  no  other  man  could  do 
them.  You  differed  with  him  deeply  and  radically,  and  you 
did  not  change  your  convictions,  but  you  found  that  you  had 
not  been  in  conflict  with  him,  but  with  something  incidental 
to  him.  Some  men's  opinions  are  all  there  is  of  them.  One 
opinion  and  you  have  the  whole  man.  With  Roosevelt  a  con 
viction  or  a  doctrine  was  an  incident.  While  you  were  fight 
ing  that  doctrine  he  was  away  into  volumes  of  others,  leav 
ing  you  to  go  on  with  your  contentions.  He  was  infinitely 
more  than  an  article  of  his  economical  or  political  creed. 
You  could  not  contend  with  such  a  man.  Your  controversy 
was  not  with  him. 

How  to  appreciate  such  a  man  In  just  proportions  is  an 
almost  impossible  task. 

No  man  lived  a  life  more  exposed  to  the  public  eye.  He 
never  whispered  but  men  were  always  blundering  about 
his  motives  and  the  wisdom  of  his  bold,  uncompromising  ut 
terances.  Where  to  stand  to  measure  him  is  the  question. 
There  is  a  position  among  the  Himalayas  where  vast  moun 
tains  arise  before  you.  One  of  them  is  so  far  distant  that 
you  see  only  its  summit.  It  is  the  highest  of  the  mighty 


422  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

range,  but  you  can  see  only  its  crown  against  the  sky.  You 
cannot  see  where  it  connects  with  the  earth  or  what  its 
bases  are.  Another  is  so  near  that  it  overwhelms  you  and 
you  lose  all  power  of  measurement.  The  first  is  the  highest 
mountain  in  all  Asia,  if  not  in  the  world.  The  second  is 
but  little  less,  but  it  fills  the  valley  out  of  which  it  springs 
with  a  suddenness  that  confuses  thought  and  is  appalling. 

Washington  is  that  mountain  now  distant,  with  its  base 
in  tradition.  Roosevelt  is  the  mountain  that  fills  the  valley 
before  you  and  is  radiant  with  refracted  and  changing  light. 
What  he  is  will  be  the  subject  of  varying  opinions  and  dis 
cussions  as  men  see  the  earth  connections  all  visible  and 
the  far  summit  towering  above  us  in  the  clouds,  refracting 
colors  differing  to  each  angle  of  vision. 

There  is  too  much  of  Roosevelt  and  too  many  vividly 
related  phases  of  his  unusual  personality  for  one  to  discuss 
philosophically  his  great  character,  much  less  his  work  as 
a  legislator,  a  soldier  and  the  chief  executive  of  his  great 
State  and  the  nation. 

No  one  fully  competent  has  presented  Theodore  Roosevelt 
to  the  world  in  outline.  Certain  traits  were  so  bold  and 
outstanding  that  all  could  discover  them  as  he  hurried  past 
in  the  rush  of  his  impetuous  course.  But  it  will  be  years 
before  this  marvelous  man  will  stand  out  in  the  symmetry 
and  harmony  of  all  the  traits  of  his  character  and  activity 
that  have  seemed  to  many  of  us  as  sometimes  conflicting 
and  inconsistent. 

To  measure  force  requires  most  delicate  instruments  and 
great  skill.  To  know  men  in  themselves  and  in  the  influence 
of  their  education,  companionship  and  surroundings  is  a 
task  that  often  has  to  be  handed  over  to  generations. 

Mr.  Roosevelt  was  a  man  with  whom  no  one  could  agree 
in  all  things  and  with  whom  many  disagreed  in  everything. 
He  outstrode  thinking  men.  The  conservative  men  could 
not  keep  pace  with  him.  He  violated  traditions  one  minute 
and  the  next  was  the  reverent  defender  of  the  men  who 
created  them.  He  renounced  his  party  one  hour  and  the 
next  was  at  its  head,  the  idolized  leader  and  defender. 

Sometimes  he  attacked  constituted  forms  with  violence, 
but  he  restrained  his  wrath  when  demagogues  threatened 
disaster.  He  made  no  use  of  anything  in  his  reformatory 
efforts  for  merely  personal  political  purposes  and  sometimes 
went  too  far  in  defiance  of  temporizing  politics. 


ESTIMATES    OF   FRIENDS  423 

Study  Mr.  Roosevelt  over  a  space  of  sufficient  breadth  and 
length  and  the  conflicts  of  his  personality  harmonize.  There 
were  certain  traits  that  were  high  peaks  in  the  range  of  his 
character.  They  must  be  studied  above  the  common  level. 

He  had  great  force.  And  men  like  force.  The  timid  man 
shrinks  from  it  when  it  has  no  visible  orbit  or  is  not  run 
ning  on  steel  rails  bolted  down  to  a  secure  roadway.  But 
the  average  man  likes  force.  That  is  why  he  chances  the 
ditch  and  death  in  a  motor  car  or  a  two  thousand  feet  fall 
from  an  aeroplane.  And  force  brings  things  to  pass.  It 
does  not  stop,  fortunately  does  not,  because  of  a  wreck  in 
the  ditch  or  a  fall  from  the  clouds.  But  there  is  force  in 
established  orbits  when  it  has  taken  form  and  retained 
energy,  where  it  has  come  out  of  star  mist  and  is  a  sun. 

Colonel  Roosevelt  had  force  well  in  hand.  It  was  an  en 
dowment.  It  was  not  idly  exhausted  if  sometimes  it  seemed 
erratic.  It  did  not  exhaust  those  who  came  in  contact  with 
it.  Its  expression  was  greatest  in  himself. 

But  it  was  a  tremendous  magnet.  No  man  drew  such 
crowds  without  arts  or  tricks  on  all  occasions.  They  rallied 
to  him  instinctively.  Whether  you  agreed  with  him  or  not, 
he  agreed  with  himself,  and  you  found  it  difficult  to  get 
away  from  his  forcible  thinking. 

He  walked  with  a  firm  stride.  He  chopped  a  tree  like  a 
lumberjack  on  a  wager.  He  liked  a  horse  that  would  throw 
a  good  rider.  You  never  heard  of  his  hunting  partridges. 
He  hunted  lions  and  tigers.  The  brook  trout  did  not  be 
guile  him.  He  fished  for  tarpon  and  shark.  Is  it  a  wonder 
that  the  virile  manhood  of  America  followed  such  a  leader? 
They  could  disagree  with  him,  but  they  were  forced  by 
force  to  follow  him. 

Had  he  been  President  when  Germany  threatened  little 
heroic  Belgium  a  challenge  would  have  been  hurled  across 
the  ocean  that  would  have  prevented  the  war,  or  if  not,  we 
would  have  closed  it  two  years  sooner. 

Colonel  Roosevelt  was  a  courageous  man  and  the  people 
like  courage.  It  was  not  a  blustering  courage.  It  was  not 
braggadocio.  There  was  no  swagger  about  it.  Its  highest 
test  was  in  the  face  of  dissenting  public  opinion.  It  never 
flinched  in  the  face  of  the  clamor  of  politics. 

What  is  right?  What  ought  to  be  done?  That  was 
enough.  It  is  certain  that  men,  whether  in  political  agree 
ment  or  political  opposition,  conceded  his  courage.  He  was 


424  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

incapable  of  making  the  mistake  of  the  trimmer.  He  never 
cultivated  his  fortunes  or  popular  favor  at  the  expense  of 
his  manhood.  It  is  a  fatal  mistake,  which  has  defeated 
many  a  great  man,  who  was  great  in  all  but  his  courage. 
The  people  are  always  sensitive  to  this  characteristic.  It  is 
as  useless  as  the  habit  of  the  ostrich  in  putting  his  head 
in  the  sand  to  escape  his  pursuers. 

The  people  will  excuse  mistakes,  but  they  have  contempt 
for  a  coward. 

The  man  who  dodges  his  vote,  who  hides  his  convictions 
lest  some  one  disagrees  with  him,  is  always  detected  and 
quickly  relegated  to  the  rear.  Respect  a  man  who'  honestly 
disagrees  with  you.  Despise  a  man  who  is  afraid  of  you. 

Roosevelt's  courage  was  an  element  of  strength.  It  was 
courage  to  defend  an  opinion,  and  it  was  courage  to  correct 
a  mistake.  Moral  courage  is  greater  than  physical  courage. 
"You  are  scared,"  said  a  soldier  to  a  fellow  soldier  whom 
he  saw  white  and  trembling  as  the  battle  began.  "Yes," 
was  the  reply,  "if  you  were  as  scared  as  I  am  you 
would  run." 

When  Roosevelt  was  about  to  give  an  interview  on  the 
piratical  sinking  of  the  Lusitania,  an  intimate  friend,  who 
wanted  him  to  answer  deliberately,  suggested  that  there 
were  four  hundred  thousand  German  votes  in  this  country. 
Aroused,  he  said :  "If  there  were  four  million  I  would  con 
demn  this  fiendish  act!"  And  he  gave  out  that  philippic 
which  awoke  the  land  to  war. 

He  was  clean.  No  bribe  stuck  to  his  hand.  And  the  people 
like  that.  His  domestic  life  required  no  apology.  His  per 
sonal  life  required  no  explanation  nor  apology.  When  he 
was  away  from  home  his  face  was  always  set  homeward,  and 
you  could  no  more  face  him  in  the  other  direction  than  you 
could  change  the  instinct  of  a  carrier  pigeon.  And  the  people 
like  that.  The  pure  home  is  the  foundation  of  civilization. 
The  noblest  thing  atoout  Roosevelt  is  his  home  life.  It  was 
a  holy  example. 

Another  trait  was  the  buoyancy  and  fullness  and  exuber 
ance  of  his  life.  No  man  enjoyed  life  more.  And  the  people 
like  that.  You  may  say  that  it  was  a  radiancy  of  health. 
We  might  think,  so  but  for  the  last  two  or  three  years  of 
fatal  illness.  Coming  or  going  from  the  hospital,  wrenched 
with  rheumatic  pains,  burning  with  fever,  he  was  always 
feeling  "bully."  It  is  a  great  thing  in  this  world  of  so  many 


©  Underwood  &  Underwood,  N.  Y. 
COL.   ROOSEVELT  AS   THE   NATION   WILL  ALWAYS   REMEMBER   HIM. 


ESTIMATES    OF    FRIENDS  425 

ills  and  misfortunes  and  sorrows  if  one  can  carry  hope  on 
the  outside  and  let  any  remnant  of  happiness  shine  through. 

No  one  can  tell  the  agony  of  that  solitary  sorrow  when 
a  grave  was  made  on  a  foreign  battlefield.  But  he  did  not 
ask  his  fellowrnen  to  help  him  carry  it.  He  carried  no 
emblem  of  death.  He  asked  for  more  things  to  do,  to  think 
about  and  to  say. 

He  said  that  he  could  not  expect  that  four  sons  could 
go  into  war  with  the  peril  of  high  explosives,  and  all  re 
turn.  It  was  the  measure  of  his  prompt  sacrifice.  He  was 
driving  on,  giving  his  own  life  to  force  that  war  to  its  con 
clusions  by  matching  his  pen  against  the  sword. 

He  must  be  an  intensely  narrow  partisan  who  does  not 
feel  the  loss  that  has  fallen  upon  his  country  by  the  death 
of  ex-President  Roosevelt.  He  could  not  be  shut  out  of 
the  counsels  of  his  own  country.  He  has  sent  over  words 
that  have  burned  into  the  brains  of  the  most  potent  states 
men  at  the  peace  conference.  He  was  tremendously  needed 
in  his  own  land  in  a  time  when  latent  Bolshevism  and 
slumbering  red  socialism  could  be  held  in  restraint  only  by 
men  of  the  type  of  Colonel  Roosevelt  and  men  of  whom  he 
was  the  acknowledged  captain. 

It  is  an  hour  that  calls  for  brave  men,  wise  men,  Ameri 
can  men  without  a  taint  or  a  remote  mixture  in  its  loyalty 
and  with  consecration  to  the  principles  of  our  fathers  and 
mothers.  Never  have  we  needed  as  now  a  recrudescence 
of  the  old-time  Americanism  that  has  been  overgrown  with 
the  poison  ivy  of  imported  destructive  thought  and  teach 
ings  of  the  ignorant  that  threaten  to  choke  and  destroy 
its  life. 

We  had  looked  to  Colonel  Roosevelt  as  the  man  whom 
the  remnant  of  thinking  men  would  follow  and  whose  clear 
voice  would  restrain  the  mad  hordes  plunging  on  behind  the 
red  flag  they  know  not  why,  a  man  wrho  would  not  sacrifice 
his  flag  to  his  personal  ambition,  a  man  whose  words, 
weighed  with  the  artisan  and  the  working  man  because  he 
never  used  them,  but  always  served  them,  a  man  who  in  his 
one  own  personality  would  outnumber  the  thousands  of 
riotous  brutes,  Hun-like  in  their  instincts,  seeking  to  apply 
the  torch  to  the  foundations  of  all  government  and  law. 


THE  GREAT  ADVENTURE 


CHAPTER  XXXII 
THE  GREAT  ADVEN? URE 

IN  the  Metropolitan  Magazine  for  last  October 
Colonel  Roosevelt  wrote  his  famous  article,  l  i  The 
Great  Adventure, ' '  every  word  of  which  is  worth' 
its  weight  in  diamonds.    It  will  be  read,  with  deepest 
interest,  by  people  a  thousand  years  from  now,  as  one 
of  the  greatest  essays  on  the  problem  of  life  and  death 
in  the  history  of  the  literature  of  the  world.    Through 
the  courtesy  of  this  magazine  we  copy  it  entire  for  this 
closing  chapter: 

Only  those  are  fit  to  live  who  do  not  fear  to  die;  and 
none  are  fit  to  die  who  have  shrunk  from  the  joy  of  life  and 
the  duty  of  life.  Both  life  and  death  are  parts  of  the  same 
Great  Adventure.  Never  yet  was  worthy  adventure  worthily 
carried  through  by  the  man  who  put  his  personal  safety 
first.  Never  yet  was  a  country  worth  living  in  unless  its 
sons  and  daughters  were  of  that  stern  stuff  which  bade 
them  die  for  it  at  need ;  and  never  yet  was  a  country 
worth  dying  for  unless  its  sons  and  daughters  thought  of 
life  not  as  something  concerned  only  with  the  selfish 
evanescence  of  the  individual  but  as  a  link  in  the  great 
chain  of  creation  and  causation,  so*  that  each  person  is  seen 
in  his  true  relations  as  an  essential  part  of  the  whole",  whose 

429 


430  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

life  must  be  made  to  serve  the  larger  and  continuing  life 
of  the  whole.  Therefore  it  is  that  the  man  who  is  not 
willing  to  die,  and  the  woman  who  is  not  willing  to  send 
her  man  to  die,  in  a  war  for  a  great  cause,  are  not  worthy 
to  live.  Therefore  it  is  that  the  man  and  woman  who  in 
peace  time  fear  or  ignore  the  primary  and  vital  duties  and 
the  high  happiness  of  family  life,  who  dare  not  beget  and 
bear  and  rear  the  life  that  is  to  last  when  they  are  in  their 
graves,  have  broken  the  chain  of  creation,  and  have  shown 
that  they  are  unfit  for  companionship  with  the  souls  ready 
for  the  Great  Adventure. 

The  wife  of  a  fighting  soldier  at  the  front  recently  wrote 
as  follows  to  the  mother  of  a  gallant  boy,  who  at  the  front 
had  fought  in  high  air  like  an  eagle,  and,  like  an  eagle, 
fighting  had  died:  "I  write  these  few  lines — not  of  con 
dolence  for  who  would  dare  to  pity  you? — but  of  deepest 
sympathy  to  you  and  yours  as  you  stand  in  the  shadow 
which  is  the  earthly  side  of  those  clouds  of  glory  in  which 
your  son's  life  has  just  passed.  Many  will  envy  you  that 
when  the  call  to  sacrifice  came  you  were  not  found  among 
the  paupers  to  whom  no  gift  of  life  worth  offering  had  been 
entrusted.  They  are  the  ones  to  be  pitied,  not  we  whose 
dearest  are  jeoparding  their  lives  unto  the  death  in  the 
high  places  of  the  field.  I  hope  my  two  sons  will  live  as 
worthily  and  die  as  greatly  as  yours." 

There  spoke  one  dauntless  soul  to  another!  America  is 
safe  while  her  daughters  are  of  this  kind,  for  their  lovers 
and  their  sons  cannot  fail,  as  long  as  beside  the  hearth 
stones  stand  such  wives  and  mothers.  And  we  have  many, 
many  such  women ;  and  their  men  are  like  unto  them. 

With  all  my  heart  I  believe  in  the  joy  of  living ;  but  those 
who  achieve  it  do  not  seek  it  as  an  end  in  itself,  but  as  a 
seized  and  prized  incident  of  hard  work  well  done  and  of 
risk  and  danger  never  wantonly  courted  but  never  shirked 
when  duty  commands  that  they  be  faced.  And  those  who 
have  earned  joy,  but  are  rewarded  only  with  sorrow,  must 
learn  the  stern  comfort  dear  to  great  souls,  the  comfort 
that  springs  from  the  knowledge  taught  in  times  of  iron 
that  the  law  of  worthy  living  is  not  fulfilled  by  pleasure, 
but  by  service,  and  by  sacrifice  when  only  thereby  can 
service  be  rendered. 

No  nation  can  be  great  unless  its  sons   and   daughters 


THE    GREAT    ADVENTURE  431 

have  in  them  the  quality  to  rise  level  to  the  needs  of  heroic 
days.  Yet  this  heroic  quality  is  but  the  apex  of  a  pyramid 
of  which  the  broad  foundations  must  solidly  rest  on  the 
performance  of  duties  so  ordinary  that  to  impatient  minds 
they  seem  commonplace.  No  army  was  ever  great  unless 
its  soldiers  possessed  the  fighting  edge.  But  the  finest 
natural  fighting  edge  is  utterly  useless  unless  the  soldiers 
and  the  junior  officers  have  been  through  months,  and  the 
officers  of  higher  command  and  the  general  staff  through 
years  of  hard,  weary,  intensive  training.  So  likewise  the 
citizenship  of  any  country  is  worthless  unless  in  a  crisis  ifc 
shows  the  spirit  of  the  two  million  Americans  who  in  this 
mighty  war  have  eagerly  come  forward  to  serve  under  the 
Banner  of  the  Stars,  afloat  and  ashore,  and  of  the  other 
millions  who  would  now  be  beside  them  over  seas  if  the 
chance  had  been  given  them  and  yet  such  spirit  will  in  the 
long  run  avail  nothing  unless  in  the  years  of  peace  the 
average  man  and  average  woman  of  the  duty-performing 
type  realize  that  the  highest  of  all  duties,  the  one  essential 
duty,  is  the  duty  of  perpetuating  the  family  life,  based  on 
the  mutual  love  and  respect  of  the  one  man  and  the  one 
woman  and  on  their  purpose  to  rear  the  healthy  and  fine- 
souled  children  whose  coming  into  life  means  that  the  fam 
ily  and  therefore  the  nation  shall  continue  in  life  and  shall 
not  end  in  a  sterile  death. 

Woe  to  those  who  invite  a  sterile  death ;  a  death  not  for 
them  only,  but  for  the  race;  the  death  which  is  ensured  by 
a  life  of  sterile  selfishness. 

But  honor,  highest  honor,  to  those  who  fearlessly  face 
death  for  a  good  cause  no  life  is  so  honorable  or  so  fruit 
ful  as  such  a  death.  Unless  men  are  willing  to  fight  and 
die  for  great  ideals,  including  love  of  country,  ideals  will 
vanish,  and  the  world  will  become  one  huge  sty  of  material 
ism,  and  unless  the  women  of  ideals  bring  forth  men 
who  are  ready  thus  to  live  and  die  the  world  of  the  future 
will  be  filled  by  the  spawn  of  the  unfit.  Alone  of  human 
beings  the  good  and  wise  mother  stands  on  a  plane  of  equal 
honor  with  the  bravest  soldier;  for  she  has  gladly  gone 
down  to  the  brink  of  the  chasm  of  darkness  to  bring  back 
the  children  in  whose  hands  rests  the  future  of  the  years. 
But  the  mother,  and  far  more  the  father,  who  flinch  from 
the  vital  task  earn  the  scorn  visited  on  the  soldier  who 
flinches  in  battle.  And  the  nation  should  by  action  mark 


432      THEODORE'  ROOSEVELT 

its  attitude  alike  toward  the  fighter  in  war  and  toward  the 
child-bearer  in  peace  and  war.  The  vital  need  of  the  na 
tion  is  that  its  men  and  women  of  the  future  shall  be  the 
sons  and  daughters  of  the  soldiers  of  the  present.  Excuse 
no  man  from  going  to  war  because  he  is  married;  but  put 
all  unmarried  men  above  a  fixed  age  at  the  hardest  and 
most  dangerous  tasks ;  and  provide  amply  for  the  children 
of  soldiers,  so  as  to  give  their  wives  the  assurance  of  ma 
terial  safety. 

In  such  a  matter  one  can  only  speak  in  general  terms 
At  this  moment  there  are  hundreds  of  thousands  of  gal 
lant  men  eating  out  their  hearts  because  the  privilege  of 
facing  death  in  battle  is  denied  them.  So  there  are  in 
numerable  women  and  men  whose  undeserved  misfortune  it 
is  that  they  have  no  children  or  but  one  child.  These  sol 
diers  denied  the  perilous  honor  they  seek,  these  men  and 
women  heart-hungry  for  the  children  of  their  longing 
dreams,  are  as  worthy  of  honor  as  the  men  who  are  war 
riors  in  fact,  as  the  women  whose  children  are  of  flesh  and 
blood.  If  the  only  son  who  is  killed  at  the  front  has  no 
brother  because  his  parents  coldly  dreaded  to  play  their 
part  in  the  Great  Adv-enture  of  Life,  then  our  sorrow  is  not 
for  them,  but  solely  for  the  son  who  himself  dared  the  Great 
Adventure  of  Death.  If,  however,  he  is  the  only  son  because 
the  "Unseen  Powers  denied  others  to  the  love  of  his  father 
and  mother,  then  we  mourn  doubly  with  them  because  their 
darling  went  up  to  the  sword  of  Azrael,  because  he  drank 
the  dark  drink  proffered  by  the  Death  Angel. 

In  America  to-day  ail  our  people  are  summoned  to  service 
and  sacrifice.  Pride  is  the  portion  only  of  those  who  know 
bitter  sorrow  or  the  foreboding  of  bitter  sorrow.  But  all  of 
us  who  give  service,  and  stand  ready  for  sacrifice,  are  the 
torch-bearers.  We  run  with  the  torches  until  we  fall,  con 
tent  if  we  can  then  pass  them  to  the  hands  of  other  runners. 
The  torches  whose  flame  is  brightest  are  borne  by  the  gallant 
men  at  the  front,  and  by  the  gallant  women  whose  husbands 
and  lovers,  whose  sons  and  brothers  are  at  the  front.  These 
men  are  high  of  soul,  as  they  face  their  fate  on  the  shell- 
shattered  earth,  or  in  the  skies  above  or  in  the  waters  be 
neath  ;  and  no  less  high  of  soul  are  the  women  with  torn 
hearts  and  shining  eyes;  the  girls  whose  boy  lovers  have 
been  struck  down  in  their  golden  morning,  and  the  mothers 


THE    GREAT    ADVENTURE  433 

and  wives  to  whom  word  has  been  brought  that  henceforth 
they  must  walk  in  the  shadow. 

These  are  the  torch-bearers;  these  are  they   who  have 
dared  the  Great  Adventure. 


THE  MAN  AS  I  KNEW  HIM 

Having  been  requested  by  the  New  York  Methodist 
Preachers'  Meeting  to  prepare  an  estimate  of  Mr. 
Roosevelt's  character  and  service  to  be  spread  on  the 
minutes  of  the  meeting  as  a  permanent  record,  I  read 
such  a  paper  at  the  Memorial  service  on  January  13th, 
which  was  addressed  by  Hon.  Chauncey  Depew  and 
Bishop  Luther  B.  Wilson.  The  title  of  that  paper  was, 
"Theodore  Roosevelt,  the  Man,  as  I  Knew  Him,"  and 
was  as  follows : 

Theodore  Roosevelt  was  one  of  the  three  greatest  men 
the  nation  ever  produced,  and  the  greatest,  the  most  widely 
known,  and  intensely  loved  man  in  the  world  at  the  time 
of  his  death. 

Theodore  Roosevelt  was  great  every  way;  all  the  depart 
ments  of  his  mind  were  developed  in  colossal  proportion. 
Few  men  ever  had  broader  mental  vision,  or  saw  farther 
into  questions  and  the  years  than  he.  His  intellectual  viril 
ity  was  expressed  in  the  mastery  of  three  learned  profes 
sions.  By  his  Harvard  course,  his  omnivorous  reading  and 
painstaking  study  he  became  an  accomplished  scholar,  ac 
quired  an  excellent  literary  style,  and  became  the  author  of 
a  score  of  volumes  that  will  have  a  permanent  place  in  the 
best  literature  of  the  nation.  He  was  passionately  fond  of 
nature,  he  loved  the  flowers,  the  rocks,  the  stars,  the  birds, 
the  insects,  and  the  big  game  of  the  forest,  and  in  his  study 
of  them  took  long  journeys  to  find  out  about  them,  and  the 
specimens  he  secured  often  at  the  risk  of  his  life  made  him 
a  scientist  of  no  mean  service  or  fame.  His  books  on  na 
ture  study  are  attractive,  and  will  be  sources  of  informa 
tion  and  education  to  the  student  for  years  to-  come.  He 
was  a  statesman  of  the  highest  rank;  as  a  practical  politi 
cian  he  was  the  equal  of  Martin  Van  Buren,  or  Lincoln. 


434  THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

His  administration  as  President  was  one  of  the  most  suc 
cessful  and  wholesome  in  the  history  of  the  republic.  It 
held  back  and  defeated  the  illegal  combination  of  interests 
that  prostituted  the  State  Legislatures  and  National  Con 
gress  with  money  and  threatened  the  destruction  of  our 
form  of  government.  The  people  believed  so  much  in  his 
wisdom,  his  honor  and  loyalty  that  he  was  as  potential  as 
a  statesman  without  office  as  he  was  with  it. 

Great  as  was  his  intellect,  he  was  greater  in  his  affec 
tions.  The  greatest-hearted  men  are  the  greatest  men.  Fame 
has  never  given  a  permanent  record  to  one  of  a  little  mean 
or  selfish  spirit.  His  heart,  which  cherished  his  wife  and 
children  as  idols,  was  wide  enough  to  take  in  the  inhabi 
tants  of  our  country  and  of  the  wide  world  as  his  brothers 
and  sisters,  whom  he  loved  better  than  himself  and  to 
whose  advancement  and  happiness  he  devoted  his  strenuous 
life,  a  heart  large"  enough  to  take  in  the  woes  and  wrongs 
of  the  oppressed  peoples  of  the  world,  and  which  like  his 
Master's  broke  in  the  garden  of  sorrow  in  his  agonizing 
struggle  to  bear  the  world's  burdens,  and  right  its  wrongs. 
He  was  a  republican  of  republicans,  a  democrat  of  demo 
crats,  and  the  idol  of  the  common  people  of  our  country 
and  the  world.  Great  as  he  was  in  intellect,  broad  as  were 
his  affections,  he  was  greatest  in  his  character.  The  sum 
mit  and  crown  of  his  greatness  was  his  goodness.  No  man 
living  had  a  keener  sense  of  the  right,  nor  a  stronger  pro 
pulsion  toward  it,  nor  an  intenser  hatred  of  wrong,  nor 
a  deeper  determination  to  fight  it,  nor  more  all  daring  cour 
age  to  overthrow  it.  His  integrity  was  as  scrupulous  as 
that  of  Cato,  Aristides,  or  "Honest.  Old  Abe,"  whom  he 
loved  so  well  and  so  faithfully  copied.  That  tongue  would 
blister  that  would  charge  a  single  penny  of  fraud,  or  an 
intentional  act  of  wrong-doing  against  him. 

We  are  most  proud  and  grateful  to  record  the  fact 
that  Theodore  Roosevelt  was  a  Christian  in  deed  and  in 
truth;  that  he  had  implicit  faith  in  the  Bible  as  the 
standard  of  individual  character,  and  national  virtue;  that 
he  believed  in  Jesus  Christ  the  Son  of  God  as  the  Saviour 
of  the  world,  and  as  his  own  personal  Redeemer;  that  loy 
alty  to  that  Christ  who  died  for  him  and  a  desire  to  estab 
lish  his  Kingdom  in  the  hea-rts  and  institutions  of  men 
was  the  chief  motive  which  impelled  him  in  his  private 
and  public  life.  We  are  grateful  to  God  for  baring  raised 


THE    GREAT    ADVENTURE  435 

up  Theodore  Roosevelt  in  our  day  and  generation  to  show 
how  large  and  good  a  man  can  grow  to  be  who  feeds  on 
the  Bible  and  Christ  as  the  bread  of  life,  and  how  nearly 
universal  in  its  influence  is  such  a  life  irradiated,  inspired, 
and  impelled  by  God's  Holy  Spirit. 

We  rejoice  at  the  clear  views  our  great  and  good  friend 
had  of  the  future  life,  and  of  his  confident  expectation  of 
enjoying  a  blessed  immortality  there. 

We  call  Theodore  Roosevelt  dead,  but  in  reality  he  has 
just  begun  to  live  in  this  world.  For  twenty  years  he  has 
so  Impressed  his  views,  his  deep  moral  convictions  on  the 
people  of  this  country,  and  has  had  such  a  sacred  place  in 
their  personal  confidence  and  love,  that  he  has  done  much 
to  shape  the  events  that  have  given  us  a  greater  and  safer 
democracy,  and  his  influence  on  the  popular  heart  for  the 
best  things  for  the  individual  and  state  will  continue  in 
erer-widening  circles  for  generations  to  come.  Now  that 
America  has  become  a  world  power  and  Roosevelt,  a  world 
wide  figure,  has  become  a  world-wide  favorite,  his  words 
and  services  and  sacrifices  will  have  still  a  potential  in 
fluence  in  the  settlement  of  those  problems  that  involve 
world-wide  democracy  and  universal  Christianity.  The  im 
mortality  of  the  cause  after  the  leader  had  dropped  out  is 
mentioned  by  Mr.  Roosevelt  in  a  speech  made  in  Carnegie 
Hall  in  1912,  which  is  as  follows : 

"The  leader  for  the  time  being,  whoever  he  may  be,  is 
but  an  instrument,  to  be  used  until  broken  and  then  to  be 
cast  aside;  and  if  he  is  worth  his  salt  he  will  care  no 
more  when  he  is  broken  than  a  soldier  cares  when  he  is 
sent  where  his  life  is  forfeit  in  order  that  the  rictory  may 
be  won.  In  the  long  fight  for  righteousness  the  watchword 
for  all  of  us  is,  spend  and  be  spent.  It  is  a  little  matter 
whether  any  one  man  fails  or  succeeds ;  but  the  cause  shall 
not  fail,  for  it  is  the  cause  of  mankind.  We  here  in  Amer 
ica,  hold  in  our  hands  the  hope  of  the  world,  the  fate  of 
the  coming  years;  and  shame  and  disgrace  will  be  ours  if 
in  our  eyes  the  light  of  high  resolve  is  dimmed,  if  we  trail 
in  the  dust  the  golden  hopes  of  men." 

So  long  as  the  Hudson  shall  flow  or  the  Atlantic  roll, 
so  long  as  snow-capped  mountain  range  shall  speak  to 
snow-capped  mountain  range  and  snow-capped  mountain 
range  to  the  blue  sea;  so  long  as  the  violet  shall  speak  of 


436  THEODORE    ROOSEVELT 

modesty,  the  lily  of  purity  or  the  rose  tell  of  love,  so  long 
as  there  shall  be  the  appreciation  of  the  true,  the  beautiful, 
the  good,  the  heroic  in  human  conduct,  so  long  will  Theo 
dore  Roosevelt  live  in  the  hearts  and  institutions  of  our 
country,  in  the  hearts  and  institutions  of  mankind. 


THE   END 


INDEX 


Abbot,  Lyman,  estimate  of 
Roosevelt,  409;  warm  per 
sonal  friend  of,  409. 

Address  in  Church,  citizen 
and  public  man,  143. 

Assembly,  State,  candidate 
for,  72;  banquet  given,  72; 
made  canvass  for,  73;  mem 
ber  of,  74;  Columbia  stu 
dents  and  professors  aided 
in  election,  74. 

Assemblyman,  as,  first 
speech,  74;  was  head  of 
committee  of  cities,  74;  pro 
moted  tenement  house  re 
form,  74;  investigated  ad 
ministration  of  N.  Y.  C.,  75; 
exposed  its»  corruption,  75; 
denounced  a  Supreme 
judge,  76;  became  national 
hero,  78;  fights  corrupt  in 
fluence  on  members,  76;  be 
came  state  leader  of  his 
party,  79. 

Assistant  Secretary  of  the 
Navy,  appointed  by  McKin- 
ley,  121;  got  navy  in  shape, 
122;  sent  Dewey  famous 
cablegram,  122. 

Bible,    address    on,    307. 

Big  Stick,   214. 

Birthplace  and  boyhood,  37; 
Theodore  Roosevelt's  an 
cestors,  39;  grandfather  a 
genius,  39;  his  father 
wealthy  merchant,  39; 
mother  distinguished 
Southern  family,  40;  rug 
ged  characteristics  from 
father,  40;  boy  was  typical 
American,.  North  and  South 
in  veins,  41;  strict  moral 
teaching  by  mother  and 
aunt,  41. 

439 


Books,  read  to  him,  42;  read 
by  him,  4.2;  on0  nature,  ad 
venture,  Indian  life,  hunt 
ing,  morals,  religion,  Af 
rica  in  childhood,  42;  au 
thor,  217. 

Burial  of  Roosevelt,   348. 

Business  men  visit  White 
House,  209. 

Boxing  taught,  49;  law 
against,  138. 

Boyhood,  playful  in  amuse 
ment  and  exercise,  43;  pa 
thetic  care  of  father  and 
mother,  48,  other  boys 
thrashed  him,  48;  took  box 
ing  lessons,  49;  religious 
instruction  of,  50;  handi 
capped  by  riches,  51; 
presidents  sons  of  poverty, 
51. 

Civil  Service  Commissioner, 
appointed,  95;  fought  spoils 
system,  96;  as  President 
commends  law  for  Philli- 
pines,  97;  commends  law  at 
home,  98. 

Coal  Miners'  Strike,  settled, 
215. 

Conservation,  of  forest,  field 
and  stream,  218. 

Cove  School,  335;  Roosevelt 
30  years  its  friend,  336. 

Cutler,  A.  H.,  Tutor,  life-long 
friend  of  Roosevelt,  fi<>; 
tells  incident  about  knowl 
edge  of  books,  61. 

Day,  Chancellor,  J.  R.,  me 
morial  address  of,  421. 

Death  of  Roosevelt,  345;  the 
great  adventure,  429. 

Degrees,  conferred  by  foreign 
universities,  231. 

Depew,  Chauncey,  address  of, 


440 


INDEX 


Derby,  Ethel  Carow  Roose 
velt,  272;  romance  concern 
ing,  271;  Doctor  fought 
through  war  in  Prance,  273; 
lieutenant-colonel,  273. 

Elk  Horn  Ranch,  bought,  84; 
ranch  life  described,  .85. 

Father,  wisely  endowed  son, 
63. 

Faults,  he  had  them,  238;  he 
said  so,  238;  supposed 
faults  his  strongest  ele 
ments,  239. 

Forest  and  mountain,  evolu 
tion  of,  91. 

Gibbons,  Cardinal,  estimate  of 
Roosevelt,  299, 

Goethals,  Gen.,  on  Roose 
velt's  relation  to  Canal, 
185. 

Governorship,  nomination  for, 
131;  nomination  opposed  by 
Senator  Platt,  131;  after 
ward  favored  by  him,  136; 
B.  B.  Odell  favored  Roose 
velt's  candidacy  and  elec 
tion,  137;  elected  by  17,786 
majority,  13  7;  administration 
one  of  reform,  137;  in  Civil 
Service,  137;  appointment 
of  tenement  house  commis 
sioner,  137;  securing  eight- 
hour  law,  138;  in  employers' 
liability  act,  138;  protec 
tion  of  women  and  chil 
dren  in  industry,  138;  in 
exposure  of  political  "cor 
ruption  in  New  York  C'ity, 
138. 

Grave,  of  Roosevelt  overlook 
ing  Sound,  348;  selected  by 
himself,  348;  visit,  to,  348. 

Great  Heart,  Bunyan's,  329; 
protected  women  and  chil 
dren,  330;  knew  and  loved 
children,  331-333;  was  loved 
by  them,  331;  kisses  little 
invalid  girl,  333. 

Halford,  Col.  E.  W.,  tells  In 
cident  of  quarrel  with 
prominent  Congressman, 
102. 

Harvard  career,  81. 

Hays,  Will  H.,  address  on 
Roosevelt,  396. 

Hercules,  choice  of,  55;  par 
allel  of,  55;  Roosevelt  a, 
213;  marks  of  similarity  be 
tween  two  as  pugilist,  war 
rior,  driver,  hunter,  lion- 
killer,  patriot,  wielder  of 
big  stick,  213. 


Home,  influence  on  destiny, 
51;  of  boyhood  ideal,  53; 
type  of  American  home, 
53;  W.  57th  St.,  moved  to, 
when  Theodore  was  16, 
64;  joined  church,  55;  laid 
mental  and  moral  plans  for 
future,  55. 

Hughes,  Charles  E.,  renomi- 
nation  for  Governor  urged 
by  Roosevelt,  203;  address 
of  before  Republican  Club, 
383. 

Jefferson,  Thomas,  Louisiana 
Purchase,  89. 

Kipling,  Rudyard,  sent  mes 
sage,  350. 

Lane,  Secy.  F.  EL,  tribute  of, 
420. 

Law  School,  entered,  71. 

Lincoln,  copied  Washington, 
28. 

Lodge,  Henry  Cabot,  memo 
rial  address,  369;  what 
Roosevelt  said  of  him,  370. 

Longworth,  Alice  Lee,  mar 
ried  in  White  House,  274; 
Nicholas,  274;  member  of 
Congress,  274. 

Mayor  of  New  York,  ran  for, 
95. 

McNichols,  J.  W.,  chum  of 
boyhood,  44;  incidents  he 
relates,  45. 

Merchant  of  New  York  pays 
tribute,  412. 

Messages  of  condolence,  349; 
from  King  and  Queen  of 
England,  Lloyd  George, 
Rudyard  Kipling  and  Presi 
dent  Wilson,  349-350. 

Moral  heroism,  manifested, 
110;  his  life  was  threat 
ened,  112;  promoted  brave 
policeman,  113;  writes  let 
ter  defying  foes,  117; 
fought  spoils  system,  96; 
illegal  trusts,  197;  speech 
after  being  shot,  236;  gives 
boys  to  war,  259;  brave  in 
Quentin's  death,  270. 

Mother,  true,  gives  boys  to 
die  for  country,  431;  hero 
ism  of  matches  that  of 
soldier,  431;  bears  and 
gives  children  to  die  for 
country,  431. 

Nation,  great  when  citizens 
die  for  it,  431. 

National  parks,  established, 
219. 

National  Republican  Conven 
tion  in  1884,  80;  delegate 
to,  80;  favored  Edmunds 


INDEX 


441 


for  President.  80;  Blaines 
election  forced  him  into  po 
litical  retirement,  80. 

Nature,  fondness  of,  43;  hia 
teacher,  83;  important  to 
health  and  education,  83. 

Naturalist,  Roosevelt  as,  218; 
knew  name  of  every  flower, 
plant,  tree,  218;  bird, 
knowledge  of  and  care  for, 
219. 

Nobel  Peace  Prize,  received, 
216. 

Oyster  Bay,  friends,  inter 
view  with,  279;  beautiful 
incidents  related  by,  279; 
gave  receptions  to  them, 
282;  Masonic  Dodge,  at 
tended,  283;  gave  money  tq, 
285;  attended  Episcopal 
church  every  Sunday  morn 
ing,  287;  Dr.  Talmadge,  rec 
tor,  tells  devotion  to  local 
church,  of  his  presence  at 
baptism  of  grandchildren 
and  his  last  communion 
service,  285. 

Panama  Canal,  Roosevelt's 
relation  to,  described  by 
Goethals,  185;  former  at 
tempts,  failures,  182; 
planned  by  Roosevelt,  182; 
Gen.  Goethals  head  of,  183; 
sanitary  regulations  of, 
183;  building  of,  183;  he 
roic  service  in,  184. 

Paradox,  A,  65. 

Parker,  John  M.,  estimate  of 
Roosevelt,  221. 

Peace  between  Russia  and 
Japan  secured,  216. 

Pinchot,  Clifford,  estimate  of 
Roosevelt,  402. 

Pioneer  Civilization,  great 
ness  of,  89. 

Police  Commissioner,  appoint 
ed  by  Mayor  Strong,  107; 
member  Board  of  Health, 
116. 

Prairie,  evolution  of,  90; 
Roosevelt's  relation  to,  91. 

Problem  of  life  and  death, 
429. 

Progressive,  candidate  for 
Presidency,  233;  received 
4,126,020  votes,  234;  re 
turned  to  Republican  party 
without  revenge  and  be 
came  its  leader,  237;  shot 
by  assassin,  235;  tragical 
speech  after  being  shot, 
236. 

Prohibition,  war  demanded, 
325;  constitutional  national 


declared  for,  325;  aided  by 
woman  suffrage,  326;  asked 
Congress  to  pass  woman 
suffrage  bill,  326. 

Ranch  life,  a  factor  In  great 
ness,  83. 

Roosevelt,  Theodore,  immor 
tality  of,  26,  435;  copied 
Washington  and  Lincoln, 
29;  letter  about  Lincoln, 
29;  comparison  of  Washing 
ton  and  Lincoln,  32;  ranch 
man,  86;  practical  cowboy, 
86;  whipped  drunken  loaf 
er,  87;  first  city  man  made 
President,  88;  reveals  a 
heart  secret,  193;  worships 
with  plain  people,  197;  felt 
divinely  called  to  fight  il 
legal  trusts,  197;  asks  for 
renomination  of  Hughes, 
206;  as  President,  163-177; 
vast  knowledge,  210;  his 
quick  decision,  210;  busi 
nesslike  method,  210;  his 
religion,  291;  joined  St. 
Nicholas  Dutch  Reformed 
Church,  291;  Dr.  Ludlow's 
account  of,  292;  a  mighty 
religious  believer,  292;  a 
mighty  religious  actor,  292; 
preached  great  sermon  in 
Oyster  Bay  Church,  295; 
commends  young  minister 
going  out  as  missionary, 
296;  his  denominational 
breadth  illustrated  at  White 
House,  298;  Cardinal  Gib 
bons  estimate  of,  299;  Rev. 
Mac  Leod  commends  his 
breadth,  300;  Rabbi  Piera 
Mendes,  tribute  to,  300;  op 
posed  return  of  intoxicants 
to  canteen,  319;  condemns 
collusion  of  saloons  with 
corrupt  politicians,  323; 
made  address  on  Bible,  307; 
as  literature,  308;  the  basis 
of  individual  and  public 
morals,  308;  faithful  teach 
ing  of  it  to  children,  311; 
the  Christ,  the  hope  of  the 
world,  313;  demands  prac 
tical  service,  313;  a  mighty 
giant,  340;  as  naturalist 
and  man,  222;  and  Hercules, 
parallel  between,  214,  215,  a 
mighty  hunter.  225;  kills 
his  first  grizzly,  225;  gets 
his  first  lion,  226;  African 
trip,  229;  South  American 
tours,  231;  explored  River 
of  Doubt,  231;  death,  345; 
at  home,  345;  told  Amos 


442 


INDEX 


turn  out  light  and  went  to 
Bleep,  345;  proceeded  by  a 
year  of  illness,  346;  funeral 
service  simple  by  Dr.  Tal- 
madge,  347;  floral  tributes 
at,  347;  buried  In  little 
cemetery  near  his  home, 
348. 

Roosevelt  Theodore,  Sons,  all 
four  went  to  Harvard,  259; 
commissioned  officers.  259. 

Roosevelt,  Mrs.  Theodore,  re 
ceives  pension,  420;  mis 
tress  at  Sagamore  Hill,  275. 

Roosevelt,  Archibald  Bullock, 
263;  critically  wounded, 
264;  writes  for  magazine, 
264;  a  captain,  264. 

Roosevelt,  Kermit,  265;  ac 
companied  father  on  trip  to 
Africa  and  South  America, 
267;  British  captain  in 
Mesopotamia,  266;  captain 
In  U.  S.  Army,  266;  great 
hunter,  266. 

Roosevelt,  Quentin,  268;  bril 
liant,  268;  brave,  268;  mar 
tyr,  269;  first  lieutenant, 
268;  killed  in  desperate  air 
battle,  270;  buried  by 
enemy,  270;  mother  visits 
grave,  272. 

Roosevelt,  Theodore,  Jr.,  se 
verely  wounded,  260;  lieu 
tenant-colonel,  260;  address 
Republican  club,  261;  enters 
politics,  261;  his  wife  in 
war  work  in  France,  262. 

Roosevelt,  Robert,  law  office, 
71;  Theodore  a  student  in, 
71. 

Rough  Rider,  raised  regiment 
of,  123;  Governor  Roose 
velt's  address  to,  125; 
Leonard  Wood,  Colonel  of, 
125;  shot  and  killed  Span 
ish  sniper,  124. 


Sagamore  Hill,  visit  to,  245; 
house  vacant,  245;  weeping 
elm  near,  245;  Charles  Lee, 
colored  chauffeur  and  a 
friend  talks  about  master — 
his  walks,  works,  sport, 
horses,  Archie's  pony,  dogs, 
etc.,  246;  boxes  for  birds, 
250;  children  of  the  gar 
dener,  251;  its  memories  of 
childhood,  253;  Mrs.  Roose 
velt  mistress  of,  254. 

Shaw,  Albert,  on  Roosevelt 
as  President,  163-177. 

Sunday  saloon,  closed  by 
Commissioner,  107. 

"The    Great    Adventure,"    429. 

Vice-Presidency,  did  not  de 
sire  it,  157;  was  forced  on 
him  by  Philadelphia  Con 
vention,  158;  became  Presi 
dent  when  McKinley  died, 
Sept.  13,  1901,  159. 

Washington,  Lincoln,  Roose 
velt,  compared,  similarity, 
27;  dissimilarity.  24. 

Wealth,  blessing  to  Theodore 
Roosevelt  the  boy,  52. 

Wilderness  of  the  West,  his 
description  of,  84;  hunting 
trips  in,  85;  the  people  of, 
84. 

Wilson.  Bishop  L.  B.,  address 
of  362-365. 

Wilson,  Woodrow,  President, 
cables  beautiful  message, 
350. 

Winning  of  the  West  by 
Roosevelt,  91. 

Woman  Suffrage,  Roosevelt 
champion  of,  325;  passed, 
326. 

World  War,  divinely  called  to 
aid,  199;  great  figure  in, 
237. 

Wood.  Gen.  Leonard,  estimate 
of  life-long  friend,  419. 


LOAN  DEPT. 


3797, 


M311655 


